ST ELIZABETH, Jamaica – Work is under way on the construction of public bathrooms in the town of Junction, St Elizabeth, which will provide sanitary convenience for residents and visitors to the town.

Representatives from the St Elizabeth Municipal Corporation and other State agencies and charity bodies, as well as citizens, turned out in the spirit of volunteerism to support the initiative, which is the parish project for Labour Day today, Monday, May 23.

Councillor for the Junction Division at the St Elizabeth Municipal Corporation, Cetany Holness, said that although the work started on Labour Day, the facility is projected to be fully completed over the next two months.

He said the public bathrooms will incorporate two stalls each for males and females and four urinals. In addition, there will be a storeroom for sanitisers and cleaning products and sanitary items.

“Over the years, you have thousands of people who are traversing the town and doing their shopping, [and] whenever they are in need of a sanitary convenience, they have to seek out business [establishments] and they are often told that those facilities are reserved for staff,” Holness pointed out.

“The need is extremely big for a sanitary convenience [and] so we are embarking on a much-needed project,” he said.

Holness said he is pleased with the turnout of people to work on the project on Labour Day and invited other individuals and members of the business community to support the initiative.

The day also saw work being carried out at the Junction Fire Station, where firefighters were joined by volunteers in giving the station a facelift, including painting, cleaning the water tank, and reroofing works.

At the Junction Police Station, personnel were busy cleaning the station grounds.

“We are also doing painting of the guardroom. It is a combination of police personnel and civilians,” Commanding Officer for the station, Inspector Alphonse Tyndale, said.