For the third time in as many days the Nadi River has once again burst its banks.
Nadi Mayor Timoci Koroiqica has confirmed flood waters are beginning to enter into villages in the low lying areas with some places in the Nadi town already flooded.
Nadi businessman Dinesh Pillay said the Nadi back road is once again closed to traffic as flood waters continue to rise.
Nadi businessman Riyaz Ali said people in Nadi are preparing for the worst and are stocking up on essentials to prevent a repeat of last week.
Namaka resident Asaeli Moce said they are closely monitoring the situation as the heavy downpour continues.
Malawai, Votualevu resident Maciu Goneva said with the rain continuing there is a real threat of a repeat of last week's flooding.
A Nadi businessman is calling on the Interim Prime Minister and the Interim Works Minister to step in to assist the business houses in Nadi as there is no water to clean their shops.
Amarsee of Amarsee Bhagwanjee said and many businessmen might think again before continuing their business in the future as they have lost everything in their shops.
Interim PM Tours Disaster Zones
The Interim Prime Minister is right now touring the disaster zones, areas affected and evacuation centres in the Western Division.
Commodore Frank Bainimarama was briefed by DISMAC officials on the situation so far while visiting St Andrews school in Nadi, one of the largest evacuation centres providing shelter for over 2000 people.
He was told that five DISMAC teams that have been activated to try and distribute rations to the evacuation centres, are finding it difficult reaching some centres because of flooding at Waimalika and Lomolomo. He was also told this is the worst flood to hit Nadi.
Meanwhile, heavy rain and floods has forced hotels in the Western Division to activate Plan B where most of them are resorting to backup generators and boreholes to cater to their customer's needs.
Raffles Gateway General Manager, Seda Siwan said they have also resorted to collecting rain water as their last resort.
The Capricorn International Hotel say they are currently using a borehole, tanks and pumps as the water pressure is very low and a backup generator whenever the power is cut off.
Road From Lautoka To Nadi Still Closed
The road from Lautoka to Nadi is still closed since the Lomolomo, Natabua and Lovu flats are still under about 2 feet of water.
Williams and Gosling staff Marama Tamanitoakula told Fijivillage News from Navutu that the flood waters are receding slowly in those areas but heavy rain is now being experienced in the area.
She said Lautoka city is clear of any flood waters and shop owners are currently cleaning the shops.
Flood Waters Force Assessment Team To Return
The increase in flood waters in most parts of the district of Wailevu West in Savusavu has forced the Cakaudrove Provincial assessment team to return to their offices.
Provincial Administrator Alipate Bolalevu has confirmed that the village of Dawara, Keka, Naviavia are still inaccessible because the bridges to those villages are still underwater.
Bolalevu confirms from the areas he has visited 15 houses in Vunivesi, 6 houses in Natuvarara, 17 houses in Naiqaqi, 20 houses in Valeni are badly affected by flood waters.
He said the continuous downpour could result in widespread flooding in these areas this afternoon.
Telecommunication Services To Most Parts Restored
Telecom Fiji Limited has confirmed that the telecommunication services to the most parts of the Western and Northern divisions have been restored.
Public Relations Officer Irene Miller confirms that the TFL Ba and Nadi Exchanges were switched on earlier today, however the operation of these exchanges depends on the weather and may need to be switched off for safety reasons should flood waters rise again.
She also confirms that as at 11am, telecommunication services in the Northern division were restored after the tireless efforts of their technicians.
TFL also said businesses are advised that should power be unavailable, their switchboard systems will not be operational and they should switch to normal telephones to have access.
Feature
Situation Worsens in Nadi
