MONTEGO BAY, St James — The new school year got off to a fairly smooth start in parishes across western Jamaica yesterday, despite an early morning roadblock mounted in St James, which affected some students.

From as early as 5:00 am, irate residents in the communities of Porto Bello, Irwindale and Sign blocked sections of the Adelphi to Montego Bay main road to protest against the lack of water in their communities.

The residents claimed that they have been without piped water for more than four weeks.

The blockade, which resulted in several students turning up late for classes at some schools Montego Bay, was later cleared by the police.

Meanwhile, Principal of Catherine Hall Primary School, Dudley Jennings told the Jamaica Observer that the first day of school saw no major hiccups.

"Things are going smoothly here at Catherine Hall Primary. We had orientation with the new parents and new students already so that allowed for the smooth opening of school this morning," he said.

There were similar reports of smooth transition from the nearby Howard Cooke Primary School, Granville All-Age and several schools in Trelawny.

At the Petersfield Primary School in Westmoreland Principal Susan Hammond described the day as tedious but said the situation was "nothing unusual."

"We are still doing registration and helping the students settle in and some of them are a little anxious and parents are also a little anxious too but we are managing," she told the Jamaica Observer.