In the wake of severe Sunday rainfall that triggered widespread flooding across low-lying communities in Suriname, the country’s Ministry of Public Works and Spatial Planning (OWRO) has launched urgent drainage clearance operations across the hardest-hit regions, progressing through key outlet pipelines as crews work against constrained resource limits to mitigate flood damage.
Work has already been completed on clearing pipelines 7A and 8A, with the ministry’s Drainage Division now shifting focus to Pipeline 10A – a project that is expected to bring much-needed flood relief to the residential area of Sophiaslust. Additional clearance work is also ongoing in Manjadam (Domburg), Welgedacht C, Kasabaholokreek, and along Abigaëlslustweg, targeting the most acutely waterlogged zones.
Vinodh Ramautar, head of the Drainage Division, told local reporters that core clearing operations are being run in-house by the ministry, with a small number of private contractors also supporting targeted outlet clearance projects. However, severe resource gaps are slowing the response: the ministry currently only operates one long-arm excavator, and two additional machines have been borrowed from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries to supplement the fleet. There are not enough available resources to deploy more heavy equipment to speed up work across all affected areas.
Longer-term plans to address chronic drainage issues have already been drafted and submitted, calling for the clearance and upgrading of 200 kilometers of drainage outlets and trenches across Paramaribo and Wanica districts, but the proposal has not yet received final approval. Without additional funding and equipment, Ramautar explained, the division cannot address the flood-related complaints flooding into the department. Crews prioritize on-site assessments before deploying limited machinery, to ensure teams focus on the most urgent crisis points first. “We are inundated with complaints, and we are doing everything possible to alleviate the worst distress,” Ramautar stated.
At present, a private contractor is carrying out outlet clearing work in Pontbuiten and Winti Wai. Two weeks ago, the ministry completed drainage work in Rehamal, but the intervention has proven insufficient to resolve persistent flooding. A new contract has now been signed with a private contractor to carry out additional work, which has not yet started, alongside a separate contract for the deployment of a sewage suction truck. Drainage improvement work is also underway along Hendrikstraat, near Tweede Rijweg, where multiple residential properties have been submerged by floodwater.
Ramautar emphasized that additional funding and heavy equipment are critical to addressing the full scope of the country’s drainage problems. The ministry does not own a sewage suction truck of its own, forcing it to rely on private contractors for this key work, and it is impossible to clear all drainage pipelines across the country with current resources. While the long-term national drainage plan calls for full clearing of all drainage pipelines, crews are currently limited to clearing pipeline mouthings wherever possible to maximize water flow into the Saramaccakanaal and reduce local flood buildup.