MORE than 200 families living in flood prone areas of North Trelawny are to be relocated over a two-year period.

According to Member of Parliament for the area, Wendell Stewart, the families are to be moved from Zion, Mowfield and a depressed Falmouth community called 75 Market Street.

“These communities were the ones worst affected by the recent heavy rains in the parish,” Stewart told the Observer.

He said the relocation would be done on a phased basis with some families set to be moved onto government lands at Daniel Town within the next six months.

“We are looking at other lands at Hague and other parts of the constituency, some of which were earmarked for the Expand-A-Village programme,” Stewart said.

He said the necessary infrastructure would be put in place to ensure the orderly relocation of the families.

But he stressed that the lands would not be given free to the families, but sold to them at an affordable price. And he warned that once the residents were relocated, “stringent measures” would be put into place to ensure that other people do not to resettle on the flood prone lands.

In the meantime, Food for the Poor has offered to assist with the provision of houses for people who were flooded out by the heavy rains.

The organisation has agreed to donate 50 houses, and a committee headed by the Reverend Heron Henry is now selecting persons for the available houses.

The lack of adequate housing, which has been affecting Trelawny for the past 20 years, has been blamed for the squatter settlements that have mushroomed in several sections of the parish.

“Zion is just one of the communities in the parish that has been taken over by squatters.

Most of the people there are living in the swamp. Most of the residents have no toilet facilities and piped water,” Stewart said.

Zion was one of the communities worst affected during the flood rains earlier this month.