WESTERN BUREAU — The Morgan’s Bridge Police Station in Grange Hill, Westmoreland is to be relocated within the next three weeks as a result of the poor conditions at the facility.

According to project manager in the Ministry of National Security, Raymond Ramdatt, operations at the station will be transferred to the upper and lower floors of the nearby Grange Hill Post Office building by the end of this month.

He said the building was now undergoing a major refurbishing exercise in order to accommodate the lawmen.

According to one source at the station, the Morgan’s Bridge facility has been in a deplorable state for quite some time because it has not had any infrastructural improvements over the last 10 years. The source maintained that the building leaks; is infested with duck ants and other termites; the doors and windows are in a bad state, and the sanitary facilities are in dire need of repairs.

“The sewerage system is also in a poor state and the stench that emanates from the septic pit is unbearable,” one police officer told the Observer.

Nearly three months ago, residents of Grange Hill and its environs threatened to block community roads if steps were not taken to improve the conditions under which the 17 policeman attached to the station have to work.

Shortly thereafter, plans were put in place to have the station relocated.

Ramdatt said the move to the post office is only a temporary measure to alleviate the conditions under which the lawmen are now working while the ministry examines the possibility of building a new facility in the Grange Hill area of the parish.

And even as there appears to be some move afoot to address the conditions at the Morgan’s Bridge station, the police officers there have raised yet another concern. According to them, they are without a reliable motor vehicle.

“The vehicle we have here is a 1994 Toyota motor- car which is very unreliable,” one policeman said.

He added that the eight year-old car needs to be repaired as it is prone to frequent breakdowns because of the mountainous terrain and the large geographic area it is used to cover.

Some of the districts that the Morgan’s Bridge police have responsibility for are the remote communities of Camp Savannah Mount, Mount Eagle, Maylersfield Mount, Herring Piece, Paul Isle, King Valley, Belle Isle Mountain and Sterling.