March 29, 2024

INFO 10

THE TRUTH IN BLACK AND WHITE

South Amelia’s Ward residents distressed over deplorable roads

——Claim garbage trucks, fire engines and ambulances cannot access the community

By Naomi Marshall

Some of the deplorable roads in South Amelia’s Ward Linden

Residents of South Amelia’s Ward, Linden, expressed concerns over the deplorable conditions of several roads in the community, a situation that has brought much frustration to the them for years.

When INFO10 Media visited the area, residents shared that the roads’ condition has caused much inconveniences to them. This has resulted in certain parts of the area being inaccessible to garbage trucks, fire engines and ambulances.

According to resident of the community for 32 years, May Anthony, the roads in the community were sand roads for over 20 years.

However, seven years ago a team of engineers had covered the road with red laterite and built a gutter on one side of the road.

This intervention was expected to be completed with the adding of tar and a gutter on the other side of the road but this never came to fruition.

“We were regularly contacting the relevant authorities to do our road and about seven years ago, some folks came in and they did one side gutter and they throw some red laterite on the sand. It was to have a follow up but we had no follow up since,” Anthony related.

Anthony noted that the road has been eroding day by day and presently, a lantern post is on the verge of falling and an earth wire is exposed, a situation which screams danger to the residents.

Residents of South Amelia’s Ward Linden

She added, “There was a fire in the community last December and the fire truck could not access the area so the house burn down. If somebody is ill, the ambulance cannot come. Cevon Waste Management use to come in the area but they stopped coming because they cannot access the area.”

The 62-year-old calls the situation unfair especially since the area is not a squatting area; she paid for her land title and has rights to basic amenities such as proper roads.

Anthony along with other residents are pleading with the relevant authorities for urgent help.

“I would like to ask them for urgent and immediate help because we are in a crisis right now. When the rain falls this very road does become a waterfall. Now the water is entering into my yard and doing destruction all the time so I would like to ask them for urgent help.”

According to another resident of the community, Anita Daniels, the erosion of the road has forced her to move her fence closer to the house. Additionally, she said that her daughter’s vehicle was damaged twice due to the holes in the road.

The residents noted that they have reached out to the Regional Democratic Council and the Linden Mayor and Town Council for help as recent as November 2021, but their attempt was in vain.

Attempts to contact the authorities by INFO 10 proved futile.