The seasonal floods in the Rupununi region during the annual rainy season have continuously been affecting region 9, which in extreme cases had adversely affected many communities.

Based on climatic studies in the region, over 80 percent of the annual rainfall occurs during the rainy season in the Rupununi.

In some cases, transportation to and from communities across the region is affected as overland transportation routes are disrupted; at times communication to the town of Lethem, the only regional supply of goods and services is completely cut off.

Before the rainy season, fear of the deadly virus had caused the village councils of communities of the South Rupununi to implement drastic measures in an attempt to prevent transmission, such as preventing the entry of persons and vehicles in and out of their communities.

This was already limiting the transportation of essential goods and services from Lethem to the rest of the region, even before the rainy season.