Eyewitness: `The crack them get bigger and we see the earth bubbling up and then you hear boom! Water start spraying from the ground. The place shake up and everybody start running. We thought the earth would open up’
By Shuntel Glasgow
The Ministry of Public Works has been working around the clock to reconstruct the section of Red Road, Providence, East Bank Demerara, that was severely damaged on Thursday as a result of the pressure from a stockpile of 30,000 tonnes of aggregate in the parking lot of the National Stadium.
Minister of Public Works, Juan Edghill told reporters yesterday that works to repair the road commenced on Thursday evening. Machines also began removing the aggregate from the stockpile area so as to distribute the weight.
EC Veira, AJM Enter-prises, XL Engineering, and GuyAmerica Con-struction Inc, are among contractors who responded on Thursday evening with machines to execute some of the work. XL Engineer-ing and GuyAmerica Construction Inc were mobilised to reconstruct the damaged road.
Orders were arranged for contractors actively engaged in government contracts who are in urgent need of crusher run and as a result 9,000 tonnes were removed yesterday.
The ministry’s auditors are on site with a scale for the documentation process.
As a result of the significant bulge that was created on Thursday, a water main belonging to the Guyana Water Inc. was damaged. However, it was quickly repaired so as to minimise the disruption of water supply to customers.
There are however, some additional challenges. There are fibre optic cables planted along the walkway adjacent to the road under repair resulting in the tempo of the work slowing somewhat as GTT relocates them to avoid service disruption. On Thursday night, Guyana Power and Light (GPL) removed its poles from along the walkway and repositioned them closer to the fence. Further, workers have to contend with commuters using the walkway while heavy-duty machines are in operation, posing a safety hazard.
Edghill noted that the police had requested permission from the Princess Hotel on Thursday to allow commuters to use their side entrance, however that operation was discontinued yesterday.
Last night, the ministry announced that a pedestrian walkway had been created within the stockpile compound at Red Road for the safe movement of persons in that area.
Following his visit to the work site yesterday, Edghill directed his team to create the pathway. The minister said safety is key and everything will be done to ensure persons using the area can do so safely.
The Minister is urging persons to use the walkway and avoid the dangers of traversing through the construction area.
As the damaged section is being reconstructed, the ministry has used the opportunity to upgrade the roadway by installing an additional turning lane and widen a bridge to prevent the East Bank Highway traffic from backing up while vehicles turn east onto Red Road.
Contractors were commended for their swift response to bring relief to the affected area.
Sand and loam were brought closer to the location to facilitate easy access for contractors on the project. The cost of the repair work is yet to be determined.
An eyewitness called ‘Fine man’ told Stabroek News yesterday that he was sitting at a vending spot on Thursday when a taxi driver showed him that the earth had small cracks. He added that at the time it looked like a minor issue since the trucks were traversing and others commuters were using the road at the same time. `Fine man’ said the cracks became bigger.
Bubbling up
“The crack them get bigger and we see the earth bubbling up and then you hear boom! Water start spraying from the ground. The place shake up and everybody start running. We thought the earth would open up”, he said.
Christian (only name given), a vendor, told Stabroek News that as a result of the damaged road there has been a decrease in sales since some commuters have diverted to other routes.
Taxi drivers acknowledged that the fares have increased since they have been using other routes to transport passengers. Persons living along Red Road have had the fare increased from $120 to $300 per person. According to the drivers, passengers are not happy with the increase but they are utilising more fuel to transport them using other routes.
Stabroek New spoke with workers who stated that they are not affected by the damaged road since they are able to access their workplaces using the same entrances. They pointed out that if they are forced to use the alternative routes, then they will be affected.
On Thursday afternoon, a stockpile of 30,000 tonnes of aggregate in the parking lot of the National Stadium, created a huge bulge that raised the entrance into Red Road, Providence, East Bank Demerara by some six to eight feet. The aggregate stockpile is maintained and owned by the Ministry of Public Works.
Edghill said on Thursday that according to the engineers’ evaluation, there was earth movement as a result of the weight of the aggregate stockpile in the National Stadium parking lot.
“We have an unusual event that has taken place. We have a bulge that has taken place that has raised the road almost 6 and 8 feet in some places.”
The bulge that was created damaged 150 metres of the road. The event was described as unusual since the area has been used several times before to stockpile aggregate, crusher run, and stone, Edghill explained.
The Amazonia Mall in a Facebook post stated that as a result of the recent closure of the intersection at Red Road Providence and the East Bank Public Road, the mall will remain open with access from eastern Red Road Providence.
Massy in a notice yesterday said that their Providence store could be reached via the Bagotstown Access Road or Stadium Road/Greenfield Road.
