LUCEA, Hanover — Mayor of Lucea Sheridan Samuels is adamant that long-awaited repairs to Woodsville Bridge, which he says has become a safety hazard, must take place before work is done on other bridges he deems less urgent.

“Several other bridges of less importance have been slated for construction and installation. We are determined that if this bridge will not be fixed, we would rather not have those that have been proposed,” said Samuels.

He was referencing a proposal, which he said the Hanover Municipal Corporation (HMC) has seen, for the rehabilitation of other bridges in the parish. Samuels did not name the other structures, but said Woodsville is not on the list.

Also known as Hillsbrook Bridge, Woodsville Bridge is located in Hanover Eastern. It was compromised during torrential rainfall in April 2022 and collapsed exactly a year later. As a result, the communities of Flower Hill, Woodsville and Hillsbrook and others are partially cut off.

According to Samuels, the bridge is vital to residents of the area, many of whom commute daily to schools and workplaces in the neighbouring parish of Westmoreland. He pointed out that a reliable crossing is critical for students who attend Frome Technical High School and other institutions in that parish.

Samuels said the HMC will be collaborating with the Member of Parliament-elect for Hanover Eastern, Andrea Purkiss, to lobby “in a very strong way” for the bridge’s inclusion in the government’s infrastructure programme.

“The makeshift bridge that is really there now is not convenient and is life-threatening. We are asking that our Member of Parliament focus and help us to lobby,” he said during last Thursday’s monthly meeting of the HMC.

In the past, Samuels had argued that neither the HMC nor the Ministry of Local Government and Community Development, under which it falls, have expertise in building bridges and would have to depend on the National Works Agency (NWA) for assistance.

Following the collapse of the bridge in 2023, the then minister with responsibility for works, Everald Warmington, and the NWA’s manager of communications and customer service, Stephen Shaw, told a media briefing that the HMC has responsibility for the bridge and the NWA would only provide technical assistance.

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