Chinese community donates $3.5M in supplies as floodwaters recede in Lethem

Floodwaters in Lethem, Region Nine (Upper Takutu- Upper Essequibo) have started to recede and as members of the community commence recovery efforts, the Chinese Association of Guyana and the Chinese business community in the town have contributed food supplies worth $3.5 million.

Haopei Yang, a member of the association’s Executive Committee, said that the stakeholders have been keenly interested in giving back to their communities, more so since there was a dire need for support.

As such, members of the Chinese community pooled resources and amassed some $3.5 million worth in food supplies, which were handed over to the regional authorities.

“We’re doing it in the spirit of ‘One Guyana’, we really believe in working together and developing the country.

“…the Chinese community will continue to, whenever they can, play a role. Or whenever they feel a responsibility to do so, they will proactively extend a hand,” Yang told the News Room on Saturday.

The Civil Defence Commission (CDC) reported earlier this week that more than 130 residents of the region were housed in four shelters, as the region grappled with flooding caused by heavy rainfall and an overflow of a nearby Brazilian river.

On Friday, however, when the Minister of Housing and Water Collin Croal visited the region, it was noted that the floodwaters started to recede in some parts. As such, the Regional Task Force and other regional authorities distributed cleaning supplies to residents.