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A DOWNPOUR in the early hours of Monday caused the Birim river in the Eastern region to overflow its banks, leading to massive flooding of houses and farmlands in the communities around the river, particularly at Anyinam, Asaman Tamfoe, Osonase, Abomosu, Jejeti, Akwabooso and Asunafo, all in the Atiwa district. Some of the towns have been cut off from the rest of the country because access roads have flooded. Some towns in neighbouring Fanteakwa district and East Akim municipalities were also affected by the floods. Daily Guide's visit to the Atiwa district yesterday saw many residents who were affected by the floods counting their losses as a lot of households items were all destroyed by the floods. Fish ponds with over 2,000 species of fish on the outskirts of Anyinam were swept away. A lot of farms have also been submerged while drugs stored in the pharmacy of a local clinic at Jejeti were all destroyed. The damage caused by the floods could not easily be quantified. Many residents in the affected areas told Daily Guide that for some years now, they had never experienced such flooding and that they believed that the recent surge in illegal mining activities along the banks of River Birim might have triggered the overflowing of the river and the consequent flooding of its catchment areas. �Galamsey operators have diverted the course of the river and are selfishly mining in the bed of the river itself so when the diverted river overflowed its banks, residents who hitherto had never had such an experience had their homes flooded,� a resident at Anyinam told Daily Guide. As a result of the seriousness of the situation, the Member of Parliament (MP) for the area, Kwasi Amoako-Atta, yesterday cut short his parliamentary duties to visit some of the affected communities, after taking a leave of absence from parliament. He told Daily Guide that he was touring the affected areas to assess the extent of damage caused by the floods and after that meet with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) boss in the district as well as the District Chief Executive (DCE) to see how best they could assist those who have been affected by the floods. He also expressed concern over the rate at which illegal mining activities had been taking place along the banks of River Birim and said such activities should be clamped down by the government.