Jamaica’s price tag from rain damage now $54 million
AFTER several hours of rain associated with the passage of Tropical Storm Laura on Sunday night into yesterday, the National Works Agency (NWA) says the initial estimate related to the damage is $54 million.
The disclosure was made by NWA CEO EG Hunter, who was speaking at a virtual press conference from the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday.
Hunter said, too, that the figure could increase.
Rains from the tropical storm, which resulted in flooding, landslides, heavy siltation, and fallen trees in several parishes, impacted roads and infrastructure.
NWA Manager of Communication and Customer Service Stephen Shaw yesterday told the Jamaica Observer that so far, there have been reports of such events in the parishes of Kingston, St Andrew, Clarendon, St Thomas, St Catherine, Westmoreland, Trelawny, and Hanover. He said while landslides have been cleared along a number of roads, allowing for single-lane traffic, some critical roads remain impassable, including sections of the Guava Ridge to Cooperidge, Halls Delight and Papine to Bull Bay main roads in St Andrew. The NWA, in the meantime, said the Papine to Bull Bay main road is also blocked by a massive landslide at Bito.
Meanwhile, motorists are now able to use the detour road at Coley, along the Morant Bay to Cedar Valley roadway in St Thomas, following the completion of emergency repairs to the road which was washed out by floodwaters. The NWA, however, said movement is restricted from Windsor Forest to Easington due to landslides. It said other roads that remained impassable up to press time yesterday, included the Redgate to Washfoot Gully roadway in St Elizabeth, which was impacted by several landslides, and the road from Wait-A-Bit to Llorimers, Trelawny, which was blocked by a fallen utility pole.
Shaw said teams from the NWA are still in the field, across all affected parishes, conducting the necessary flood damage assessments and undertaking clearing and sweeping activities in a bid to safely reopen roads.
In the meantime, NWA discouraged motorists from attempting to use flooded roads and bridges.
And, responding to reports that sections of the newly completed Hagley Park Road in the Corporate Area have collapsed, resulting in flooding of nearby homes and businesses, Shaw said he was unable to confirm.
“I don’t know about flooding to homes and businesses. What I do know is that [at] a section of the road, there is a drainage issue that the contractor is actually working on. It is an outstanding item that is being addressed by the contractor, and so it manifested itself as some damage to a section of the pavement, but aside from that, the road stood up,” he told the Observer.
Yesterday, Member of Parliament of St Andrew East Central and Opposition Leader Dr Peter Phillips, in a statement issued to the media, called on the Government and the NWA to provide an urgent explanation for “the collapse of several sections” of the road, which is in his constituency.
According to Dr Phillips, the “collapsed roadway appears to be the result of poor and shoddy construction and inadequate planning, which was highlighted by the Opposition and other stakeholders at several junctures during the project, but to no avail”.
He said, in addition to the collapse, the condition has caused major flooding along the damaged stretch of the road, displacing residents and causing damage to homes and properties.
“I share the pain of the affected persons and assure them that representation will be made to get redress for them,” the Opposition leader stated, adding that “the NWA needs to tell the residents when rehabilitation works will begin, and arrangements must be made to compensate the affected persons and businesses for the damage incurred”.
“Additionally, the country must be told how much the results of this mismanagement will cost taxpayers,” Dr Phillips said.
In the meantime, the National Meteorological Service, in an update sometime after four yesterday, said the tropical storm has induced a trough that was at the time to the west of Jamaica. It said with the trough to the west, the island is likely to experience more stable weather. It further said a weak ridge of high pressure is building over the central Caribbean and is likely to increase wind speeds over Jamaica, especially on Thursday.
— Alicia Dunkley-Willis