A section of the Linden-Lethem trail will be closed today and tomorrow posing more hardships for Region Nine residents who face rising prices.
The closure of the section of road is to facilitate repairs to a log bridge located 30 miles from the Kurupukari crossing, the Ministry of Public Works and Communications said in a notice published yesterday. The Ministry apologised for the inconvenience this may cause.
Over the past several days, high levels of water from continuing heavy rains covered sections of the road, degrading some parts. Some parts have been made virtually impassable. A resident told this newspaper that from Thursday, heavy trucks were unable to traverse on a badly deteriorated section of the road close to Annai and smaller canter trucks are being used to carry the goods on to Lethem, 76 miles away. The trucks make several trips to bring the full load in, the resident said.
Stabroek News was told that prices at some stores have risen as a result. The price of diesel, made a significant jump from around $215 per litre to $380, the resident said. This fuel is widely used in the community. However, up to yesterday the prices of gasoline and kerosene remained the same. But with rains still falling and the state of the road deteriorating, residents are bracing for even more high prices.