Residents of Wakefield district in Trelawny say they are almost trapped in the community following heavy rains this week that exacerbated the impact of Hurricane Melissa.

“Bwoy it is rough on us because we are just trapped in here, no food, the little that they give us we shared it with others already,” Sharon Morris, a resident of Wakefield, told Observer Online during a visit to the community on Thursday.

The residents say recent rainfall has re-flooded areas where the water had receded after Hurricane Melissa and made areas where the water had lingered even worse.

Three entrances to the community are now impassable for most cars other than large vans, and those crossing the water are charging passengers fees between $1,000 and $1,500, more than five times the standard rate of a regular taxi.

“We cant go out, we cant go Falmouth, we cant go Montego Bay, or Muschett, we cant go to Bunkers Hill because we are blocked in. The water has surrounded us,” Fayon Ellis, who resides in the Logwood Valley community in Wakefield, said.

“Some people chance it but it is not safe,” she explained.

The Observer team accessed the community through a makeshift route avoiding one of the deepest pools of water, but still had to traverse areas with significant flooding.

Leonie Clarke, who was sitting outside her home observing the water lapping at her gate, said the issue has been a longstanding one.

“It has been an issue for a long time. The only time we dont have this problem is when the drain is properly cleaned.”

Her son, Rodwayne explained: “There are ponds around this area and there is a drain on this side [but] the drain where the water should be pushing out is higher than the road so the water has no space to go down. There is a high bank on the other side where the water is supposed to channel through so the water keeps rising and coming back on the road.”

For now, some residents use a makeshift bridge to traverse different sections of the community but that solution is not perfect as the roads ahead are still blocked.

“We have the advantage because there is a store here,” Rodwayne said, pointing across a pool of water. “They have to take to the bush and do what they are doing before it gets dark.”

The young man added that there had been a consultation with residents to fix the issue last year.

“It can be solved, they just have to work on it before it rains,” he said.

Now, residents say their biggest concern is clean water.

“Even if we don’t get food supplies, we need water, we have young children home,” Ellis explained.

She said she was terrified of the possibility of one of the residents getting sick and needing urgent medical assistance.

“My daughter comes out only once per day. I’m not even gonna talk about if we get sick. Thats a different thinking because if we get sick we ago dead. Even if we get a vehicle, most of them are not going through the water.”

Another resident, Mae Allen, interjected: “A helicopter haffi go come for us.”

Allen said relief items had been brought to the community at least one time since the passage of the hurricane, and a marked Chukka van was seen donating food items and water to the residents.

There was also evidence of hot meals and care packages being brought into the vicinity by World Central Kitchen and The Jamaica Guangdomg Association, respectively.

However, up to the time the team left the area, those supplies had not made it into the Wakefield community.

(Video: Dana Malcolm)