 Initially , Cindy 's brisk winds downed banana trees and power lines across northern Martinique . After hours of continued rain , several rivers — such as the Rivière des Pères , Rivière Claire and Rivière Sèche — quickly swelled and overflowed . Heavy flooding and mudslides swept through northern villages , submerging homes and destroying roads and bridges . News footage on national television showed " cars [ being ] swept away to sea and buried in mud " . The Prêcheur River , which normally flows at 18 ft3 / s ( 0 @.@ 5 m3 / s ) , burst its banks upon attaining an exceptional discharge rate of nearly 25 @,@ 000 ft3 / s ( 700 m3 / s ) . Large amounts of volcanic matter from the riverbed congealed into a massive debris flow that struck the small commune of Le Prêcheur . Reaching heights of up to 10 ft ( 3 m ) , the debris completely covered houses and roads and wreaked an estimated ₣ 15 million ( 1993 value ; $ 2 @.@ 7 million in 1993 USD ) in structural damage . Flash floods following the overflow of the Grande Rivière surged through the adjacent village of the same name , devastating property and drowning one person . Despite recent improvements to its flood defenses , the Rivière Roxelane rapidly topped its banks and inundated much of Saint @-@ Pierre . Farther south , a combination of torrential rainfall and poor storm drains resulted in widespread flood damage to private property and an aquafarm in Le Morne @-@ Vert . 
