Severe weather damaged homes and knocked down power lines in the Adamsville community off the Lady Young Road early yesterday morning. There were no reports of injuries.
Coneal Raggutte, a Port-of-Spain City Corporation employee, said strong winds ripped the steel roof off his home. All that was left of it were two crumpled heaps of metal which landed 30 feet away
“The steel roof was suspended in the air it seemed like five to ten minutes. Then it slammed into the electric pole outside knocking down the wires and electricity went. I grabbed my two daughters, together with my wife we went to the gallery and put the children under the table,” he said.
“All the electrical fittings are blown, eight houses have no electricity, my clothes, speakers, tv, appliances are soaked. My main concern is my children, with no lights, if the rain falls again, we have no tarpaulins, I am asking if any relief agencies can assist.”
At the Queen’s Park Savannah, opposite Queen’s Royal College, trees fell on two parked cars, while another fell across the roadway at Queen’s Park East, temporarily disrupting traffic.
A house ar Layan Hill, Belmont, was badly damaged.
Areas along the East/West Corridor were the hardest hit by the freak storm, according to officials of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management.
There were reports of damaged homes at Park Avenue, Mt Hope, and first responders responded to calls from Robinson and Upper Irving Streets in San Juan, Upper Saddle Road, Santa Cruz and parts of Arima.
T&TEC crews were despatched to clear fallen branches from high tension wires along the Lady Young Road and Radio Emergency Associated Communications Team personnel along with disaster response teams from the San Juan/Laventille Regional Corporation were among the crews at work in the aftermath of the severe weather.
By noon the Met Office had downgraded its adverse weather alert from the yellow to green. Meteorologist Arnold Ramgoolam said a low-level trough brought the ITCZ over T&T, enhanced by the favourable upper-level winds.
“In addition to that, there was a low-level jet stream in the area. We recorded a gust of 42 knots, so we got some strong winds.”
Ramgoolam said another tropical wave is expected to affect the country on Tuesday.
