Weather: Better days ahead following floods

Cyclone Daya has held the country under virtual lockdown for three days. Heavy rainfall and strong wind were all too common sights over the past week. The bad weather prompted the Education Minister to close schools on Tuesday and Wednesday following the public holiday at the beginning of the week. On Wednesday, torrential rains associated with cyclone Daya swept through the island and caused major flooding in many regions, the North having faced the brunt of it. The areas most affected were Port-Louis, Grand Baie, Pointe aux Canonniers and other northern villages. The meteorological service claims, in its latest forecast, that the weather will start getting better on Friday. “During the weekend, the weather will be less windy with some local showers. The temperature will rise again to 33C to 34C,” said Prem Golaup, deputy director of the met services. The high rainfalls caused 1,616 refugees to spend Wednesday night in the refuge centres. Each refugee will receive an allocation of Rs 160 per day. It was the refugee centre of Cite La Cure that had welcomed the largest number of persons. The other places where people have sought refuge are: Baie du Tombeau, Pailles, Cité Vallijee and Tranquebar. The Terre Rouge/Verdun link road is now reopen for traffic as from Thursday. The road was closed because of heavy rainfall and fog. New law on disasters announced An inter-ministerial committee was held to review the situation in the country after torrential rains on Thursday. This committee was chaired by the Minister of Housing and Lands, Showkutally Soodhun. The Minister of Environment and Disaster Management, Raj Dayal, announced that a National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Bill will be introduced in Parliament shortly. This will provide the authorities with more leeway in dealing with people who refuse to be evacuated during natural calamities. The main objective of this Bill is to better protect the population in times of natural disaster, added Minister Dayal. Some residents of Chitrakoot and Vallee des Pretes refused to be evacuated on Wednesday. Reservoir filled up to 74.2 % After the heavy rainfall, the country’s reservoirs have been filled up to 74.2%. La Nicoliere is at 99% of its capacity while Mare aux Vacoas is at 84.6%. Piton du Milieu 99%; La Ferme 64.8%; Mare Long 31.2%; Midlands Dam 73.2%. (See chart) [[{"type":"media","view_mode":"media_large","fid":"10331","attributes":{"class":"media-image aligncenter wp-image-17868 size-large","typeof":"foaf:Image","style":"","width":"960","height":"369","alt":"table-weatgher"}}]]