GOVERNMENT vowed yesterday that no further building would be allowed near the Hope River in St Andrew, in the wake of the destruction and loss of life when angry flood waters from the river swallowed several houses in Eastern St Andrew during the passage of Tropical Storm Gustav.

The area was declared a "no build zone" several years ago, but grew into a large informal settlement as a number of people continued building large concrete structures there.

 "We are not allowing one more block to be laid along the Hope River; we are going to have to deal with this situation and take firm action to prevent any further construction along the Hope River," Prime Minister Bruce Golding told reporters at a press briefing at Jamaica House in Kingston yesterday afternoon.

"We are trying to determine how many lives have been lost; in a number of instances they told me that the persons vacated before the houses went down. In one case, the owner of a house told me that he was able to escape but there was somebody on the upper floor who he said perished when the house collapsed," Golding said.

The number of deaths from the storm has been estimated at 11.

The communities of Tavern and Kintyre have over the years been hard hit during torrential rains when the Hope River vengefully reclaimed land taken over by informal housing. The flood waters have been known to obliterate homes and partially *u*k others under.

Golding said yesterday that the blame was to be put at the feet of home owners and some politicians.

"The truth is some of us are too careless and in the case of us politicians, some of us are irresponsible," the prime minister said.

He said that despite the fact that the area had been declared a "no build zone" years ago, members of the political directorate had turned a blind eye to the actions of their constituents who continued to build in unsafe areas. Golding said instructions had been issued to the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation to ensure that the building restrictions were not violated and said efforts are now being made to identify areas where houses could be built.

In the meantime, the prime minister said a preliminary estimate of the number of houses damaged has been placed at 150, with a significant number of them in the Spring Bed area of Portland. He said a preliminary damage assessment was being done to determine the total loss, the results of which should be available by Monday.

"The impact was concentrated and severe. We have reports to suggest that with the exception of Portland and St Thomas wind damage was not severe, but there has been flooding, mudslides, land slippage and a great deal of damage to sections of St Thomas, Portland, Eastern and East Rural St Andrew," Golding said.

In addition, Golding said his administration would be cautious in dealing with proposed legislation for forced evacuation when a flood threatens.

"It is something we are examining but it is something about which I express caution," Golding said yesterday.

The prime minister said persons were in most cases reluctant to evacuate until it was urgent not because they have been careless, but because of concerns about the safety of contents of their dwellings, among other issues.

He said there were a number of factors which would make such a move difficult, as, if the government made evacuation mandatory it would also have to consider whether it would be able to assume responsibility for loss sustained either to the dwellings or the contents.