Stabilisation road works to resume in Chatham Monday

Black Immigrant Daily News

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A landslip is currently threatening a portion of the Southern Main Road in Chatham Village.
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Point Fortin MP Kennedy Richards Jr has assured his constituents that stabilisation works on a massive landslip along the Southern Main Road in Chatham Village is set to resume on Monday.

If there is no rain.

Several residents have been complaining that landslips on both sides of the road are worsening. It is unsafe, they say, for any car to pass on the narrow remaining strip of the road. They fear that “at any time now,” they cut be cut off from the rest of Trinidad and Tobago.

Richards said, “It could happen, but no one knows if or when that could happen. The work is getting done. I know that they are frightened, and I am frightened too. Trying to upgrade the road, we must not lose a soul. While I am scared, I must trust the engineers to do their jobs. Kennedy is the remedy but that does not mean things would be easy.

“The Government is spending upwards of $10 million on this site. This is to ensure that the south western peninsula does not get cut off from the rest of the country. The work must be done properly. People are anxious, and I am just as anxious.”

The MP recalled that a contractor had recently started stabilisation work on one side of the road then stopped. That was because soil testing results showed that the other side of the road also needed work. That caused a change in the original scope of the project.

He said the change in design to fix both sides, and the bad weather caused a delay in the restart of the work.

Richards said he was being kept abreast of the project and was working to have the problems fixed.

The contractor and the Works and Transport Ministry have been working with WASA regarding the updated design.

A landslip is currently threatening a portion of the Southern Main Road in Chatham Village. –

Richards said, “After this landslip is fixed, there are more 19 remaining from there straight to Icacos. I checked them myself. I spoke to (Works and Transport Minister Rohan) Sinanan, who is willing to help. But he is dealing with 450 landslips throughout the country. Every time he fixes one, he gets two more. That is the challenge we have in the country.

“So while he (Sinanan) is working to remedy the situation, others parts are getting damaged. The Government has been supporting wherever it could. If we had more money, we would have had more done.”

Richards said he was also trying to identify alternative routes like an old Ministry of Works road that connects Buenos Ayers, Erin, to Chatham Road South. But that road also has a landslip.

A statement from the PURE Unit of the Ministry said construction works on the southern landslip were set to restart on August 2. But there were further land movements owing to the bad weather over the past few weeks.

The statement added that work on the site was set to restart on Monday and is expected to finish by the end of November.

One resident, Rikki Undheim, said the road is the only access route to other parts of Cedros.

“Villagers are waiting for the whole southwest to be isolated from the country. This is the worst I have ever seen this landslip. It was already bad, but after the contractor cleared down the bamboo trees holding up the road, it got worse,” Undheim said.

“God forbid someone is on the road when the road gives in. We are frustrated. There are numerous bad roads in Cedros and other parts of TT. But ours are unsafe, and lives are at risk.”

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