During the May rains, the sedimentation level at the Yallahs intake forced the NWC to dump all the water from its catchment so it could run back into the river. So in spite of the abundance of water which poured from the heavens, none could have been captured and stored for use by communities in the hills or in the city.
“We are blessed in this side of the island to have one of the best drinking water worldwide - apart from when we have heavy rains. Removing sediment from the Yallahs River and Negro River intakes take a week using heavy equipment. The cleaning process at the Hope River intake takes a couple hours".
While there has been no scientific study to quantify the level of sedimentation which affects the Yallahs and Hope River intakes, the NWC can safely say that the Yallahs river has the heaviest level of sedimentation. This is followed by the Negro River in St. Thomas and to a lesser extent, the Hope River in St. Andrew.