KINGSTON, Jamaica — The National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) this morning advised that it would be temporarily suspending garbage collection in eastern, northern and central parishes in light of heavy rains in those parishes.

A release from the Authority this morning, quoted Executive Director Audley Gordon as saying that the suspension of garbage collection is to ensure safety of its collection crews and the agency’s assets.

“Our crews are unable to enter many communities because of flooding as a result of the heavy rains. We must ensure the safety of our crews. Therefore we are suspending collection until it is safe to do so. We are securing our trucks and the assets of the agency to ensure that once we resume, we will redouble our efforts to collect the backlog,” said Gordon.

NSWMA has fully suspended services in the parishes of St Catherine, Clarendon, Manchester and St

Elizabeth, with partial suspension in other parishes.

The NSWMA head in the meantime asked all residents to containerise their solid waste and securely store them until the crews begin collection.

He further advised that regional teams will assess the situation and a further update will be provided.