Housing Ministry continuing work on homes damaged by Elsa

The Ministry of Housing has completed most of the housing assessments for damage done by Hurricane Elsa and work will soon begin in earnest, said Minister of Housing, Lands and Maintenance, Dr William Duguid.

“Out of the 2077 assessments we have received, 81 per cent has been completed, around 1 681. Out of those [complete assessments] what we have found so far is 404 houses will be total rebuilds and 1 191 will be repairs. We anticipate that, with all assessments complete, we will be in the 480 range when it comes to rebuilding homes,” he said, adding all the assessments in St Peter, St Andrew, St Joseph and St John were done.

The housing minister also said 90 people requested materials to make their own repairs and they were accommodated. However, he admitted the demand on materials was a challenge overall.

“We are experiencing some shortage of materials, mainly because of the amount of work that is going on and the fact everybody is trying to pull from the same suppliers and delivery personnel. We are working through [the latter] by bringing in our own trucks and hiring trucks to be able and get those materials from the wholesalers and have them delivered to the various sites. We are looking at every possibility to be able to get this problem resolved,” he said.

Duguid was speaking yesterday during the removal of 64-year-old Judy Goddard’s house in Mahogany Lane, The City. The elderly woman’s home was severely damaged during Hurricane Elsa and the Urban Development Commission (UDC) was removing what was left in preparation of building her a new three bedroom one bathroom dwelling.

Goddard, who was a little overwhelmed, said she was happy she was getting a new home, adding she had lived on the spot all her life. She’s currently staying with her daughter, who lives next door. (CA)