RICHMOND, St Mary — An 11-month-old child and his older cousins were rescued by their grandfather when the foundation of their one-room concrete house collapsed and pitched the structure dangerously close to a nearby river in this parish on Saturday.

Eric Francis told the Jamaica Observer that he had just returned home when he heard the sound of the house shifting.

“I heard the noise coming from the back, just as I came off the road, and I jumped in the house and took out the baby first then his cousins,” he said.

The young child and his mother live in the house which is located on Richard Creary Crescent in Richmond. It appears the ground under the structure collapsed after prolonged rainfall between Friday night and Saturday.

Francis said he had a similar experience eight years ago when his house collapsed in the river. He did not indicate what caused the first incident but theorised that blocked drains contributed to Saturday’s disaster at his daughter’s residence. He insisted that the structure was sound but still no match for the volume of water that saturated the soil.

“I have never seen so much water rush down,” he said.

Francis said the drains were blocked by tree branches that were cut down but not disposed of properly.

He and his daughter are pleading for help from anyone who will offer it, as they pick up the pieces. They are also pleading with the relevant authorities to clean the drains and properly dispose of all debris, including tree limbs.

– Ingrid Henry