Thirty-six houses were affected by heavy rains over the weekend, the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) said yesterday.

In a ’Situation Update’ released at 12.30 p.m. the ODPM said the homes fell within four municipalities and all cases had been attended to by the respective authorities, including the Fire Service, regional corporations and the Ministry of Social Development.

In areas of South Trinidad, residents were repairing roofs and cleaning their damaged homes yesterday as well as counting their losses.

Residents of Mahabalsingh Branch Trace, Navet Village, Rio Claro, gave up Sunday lunches and family time to repair their roofs which had been blown away by high winds.

Gina Ramkissoon said she was lying on her bed when she heard the loud crashing sound. ’It happened in a split second. Half of the roof was ripped off from my house. Several trees were also uprooted,’ she said.

Ramkissoon yesterday said she and her 17-year-old daughter Yudika were still traumatised by the incident. The family of five lost electronic items and appliances and a wall under the house was also destroyed.

Six other houses in the area were similarly affected.

The walls of Cecil Persad’s wooden home were torn down by the strong winds. Eleven people were affected in his family and he estimated damage at $80,000.

As residents tried to salvage their belongings they spoke yesterday of their fear of being trapped as the only bridge leading out of the village was on the verge of being covered with water.

’We don’t expect this water to go down until the next two to three days,’ Ramkissoon said.

In Barrackpore, residents were still marooned in their homes as floodwaters covered roads yesterday.

Residents were seen wading through knee and waist-high water to gain access to their houses.

-with reporting by

Trevor Watson