By LOSALINI RASOQOSOQO

Losevati Kotoituba in front of her flooded house in Bilo, Veisari yesterday. Photo: PAULINI RATULAILAI.

A 67-year-old bedridden man, who was suffering from stroke, spent last night at his flooded home in Bilo, Veisari.
He could not be evacuated yesterday by family members because of the rapid rise in floodwaters.
At around 3.30pm yesterday, family members and neighbours could only watch as the water levels continued to rise in the area.
“We didn’t know how to take him out of the house,” his sister Losevati Kotoituba said.
“The water level was rising so fast; we did not take the flood warning seriously simply because this is the first time we are experiencing this since moving here last year,” she said.
Ms Kotoituba, who is a tenant, said his brother had been placed on a bed and they had piled all their belongings on the table hoping that the water level does not reach that high.
Rajesh Prasad, a resident in the area said they were surprised. He said the last time the area was flooded was in 1997.
Meanwhile, six evacuation centres around the Veisari and Lami areas were activated yesterday by the National Disaster Management Office.
They were Qauia Community Church Hall, Naivikinikini Church, Lami, LDS Church, Qauia, St Thomas Primary School, Monfort Boys Town School and Chauhan Chand Memorial School.