Multi-million $ company threatens to close operations if drainage concerns not addressed

The Continental Group of Companies is threatening to close down its operations and send more than 300 staff home if their calls for authorities to address the irrigation woes in the Ruimveldt Industrial Site area continue to fall on deaf ears.

Today (Thursday, June 22, 2017), company Secretary, Mohamed Ally during an interview with the News Room stated that at the moment, Millions of dollars in raw materials for the production of paint are at stake as flood waters continues to pour into the company’s warehouse and other departments of the Ruimveldt complex.

We were told that letters were written to Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo where these concerns among others were raised since they continue to hamper the company’s operations.

During Thursday’s visit, News Room was pointed to a clogged main drainage network which is supposed to drain the industrial site during the rainy period.

The Continental Group of Companies was forced to shut down its operations for the most part of Wednesday (June 21, 2017), as they rushed to take raw materials and other vital items to higher ground to avoid damage.

The Management contended that while the drainage network in the area remains clogged (something that has been ongoing for years) there is at least one business entity which is situated in the same area that pumps water out of its premises onto the roadway. The water eventually drains into the Continental Group of Companies Compound.

During our visit on Thursday also, we observed that several workers were placing sandbags at the entrance of the facility to prevent the inflow of water while several pumps were operable, pumping the water out of the premises.