FALMOUTH, Trelawny — Used condoms strewn among the rubble of demolished shacks were among the signs of the thriving sex trade that was taking place at Falmouth Fishing Village, next to a school, before Trelawny Municipal Corporation (TMC) stepped in on Tuesday.

“A large quantity of used condoms was among the rubble and around the area where those buildings were demolished,” said a senior member of the local authority who was part of the team that oversaw the demolition.

The TMC staffer spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear of retaliation by owners of the shacks that were flattened. The demolition took place four days later than Falmouth Mayor C Junior Gager had wanted, as operators of the heavy equipment needed were fearful of taking the job. The parish police were on hand to provide support.

High piles of rubble were cleared from the area and some of the structures razed. The team is expected to return to the location to continue the operation. Ahead of the demolition crew’s arrival on Tuesday, illegal occupants themselves demolished about six of the buildings.

Gager said TMC will be keeping a close watch on the facility to ensure that the downed buildings are not rebuilt.

“We will be monitoring the space. I am just coming out of a meeting with my superintendent and other officers and they will be monitoring the area on a daily basis so that it can never, ever get back to this state. This can be quite embarrassing for the town. We can’t have it like this,” he said.

According to the mayor, TMC, in collaboration with Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ), provided the land for the establishment of a fishing village. PAJ, with the assistance of Food For the Poor, built proper buildings with bathroom facilities to provide storage for fisherfolk, Gager said.

“They built nice offices that could store equipment and all of that. The sort of plyboard sheet that we have been seeing placed there wasn’t done by the Port Authority,” the mayor stressed.

“Some of the people that you see there aren’t fishermen,” he added.

One fisherman who gave his name as Jamari insisted that the area which was the focus of Tuesday’s demolition was not occupied by any of his colleagues.

“Here is not fishermen quarters… No fishermen don’t live up here so. The fishermen go to sea at night; they need to have an avenue where they can have their gears and stuff stored,” said the man who has made a living from the sea for more than two decades.

He explained that the village, if available for their use, would be useful.

“You can’t bring everything from your yard; you can’t carry everything back to your yard. Some of us have to take taxi so we have to have our premises where we keep our gears. We have to have a place where we can take a little nap before we go to sea,” Jamari reasoned.

“Remember we coming from sea four, five o’clock sometimes, in the morning. Where we going to go at that time? We take a little five [nap] before we go back to our yard,” he added.

Mayor Gager told last Thursday’s monthly meeting of TMC that occupants of the now-demolished structures stole electricity, played loud music during school hours, and defecated on the grounds of Falmouth All-Age School which it borders. There have been previous threats to level the buildings but Tuesday was the first time action was taken.