THIS WEEK Street Beat visited St Lucy to take a look at some of the goings-on.
At Grape Hall and Avis Town, there were stories waiting to be told and people, who said they were unaccustomed to the WEEKEND Nation’s presence, waiting to tell them.
A Barbados Water Authority team was repairing a burst four-inch main in Grape Hall. The men said they had responded to the call within 24 hours.
As the men toiled in the mud, they exhumed rusty metal piping representative of an ageing system, replacing it with more sanitary looking PVC pipe.
However, he pointed out they could only repair the section which was damaged and the new pipe still had to reconnect to old metal piping down the line.
“We have to connect this PVC back to the old pipes and then the old pipe can’t handle the pressure and burst – then people say you ain’t doing nothing but we can only do what we can do,” he said.
The BWA worker wanted the public to know they were not sleeping on the job and were kept busy fixing pipes. In fact, as Street Beat was talking to them, another call came in and some of the men had to be dispatched to another area to investigate.
Nearby, another set of Government workers were on the job. Health inspectors from the Maurice Byer Polyclinic were speaking to residents about an unsightly dumping ground full of tree cuttings and even an old mattress. The area was one which looked like it become an even more serious problem later and inspectors intended to nip it in the bud.
Resident Gregory Warner called the rubbish pile “ridiculous”.
“People are just dumping things here and I don’t know why. When they cut trees, they dump the branches here and now sand flies and mosquitoes are bugging me at night. I don’t like it; I have to use too much spray. It looks ridiculous, somebody needs to do something,” he said.
Another resident, identified only as Bowen, said he too wanted the garbage pile moved but added he was reluctant to confront the guilty party.
“This has been here a long time; I have been wondering when someone would do something about it,” he said.
The health inspectors said they had plans to have the debris removed and would erect a “no dumping” sign on the spot.
Around the corner was an unusual sight: a local craft stand in a rural, bushy area. Such things are usually seen next to or on a beach but owner Olivia Archer said there was method in the unusual.
“Where there are beaches, tourists will go. I live here and during tourist season, you would get people passing here going to Archer’s Bay, even though out there needs cleaning up. Some tourists come here looking for the Animal Flower Cave too so while it is a little slow now, I believe I can make a good living right here,” she said.
Archer said she started The Shell Shop in River Bay and, after a series of events; it was reconstituted outside her home. She said she started with a simple table and completed the stand a week ago. She said she had a love of selling craft and it was always something she was interested in doing.
“I love what I’m doing; it is a vision from God and as time goes by it will get bigger and better. Some people ask how I can get through but I trust in God,” she said.
Over in Avis Town, an old truck wreck was causing the residents no end of concern. While the owner was not at home, people spoke about what they thought though none wished to be identified.
“This a narrow road and that truck ain’t driving so if an emergency vehicle had to come through here, it can’t pass. Of course I would like to see it move, it was here for too long,” said one.
Another resident recalled when a Barbados Light & Power truck pulled down a power line by accident because it had to squeeze past the truck.
“It want moving; everybody in here feel so. If anything happens, the fire truck can’t get in here. The owner say he will move it but I guess that must be when he ready.”
Another resident said the position of the truck had traffic passing too close to people’s houses. Despite numerous complaints, they said nothing had been done.
carlosatwell@nationnews.com
