Tales of woe at scenic Maracas Bay, sea water to flush toilets

HARD LABOUR: A man collects sea water at Maracas Bay to be used to flush toilets at the public facilities which have been under renovation since last July.
HARD LABOUR: A man collects sea water at Maracas Bay to be used to flush toilets at the public facilities which have been under renovation since last July.

Residents, vendors and visitors to scenic Maracas Bay yesterday spoke of hardship because of the weather and also the protracted and still unfinished redesign and restoration project on facilities at the beach, undertaken by government.

Business owners and residents said they continue to lose not only revenue but are cut off from the rest of the country whenever there is a landslide such as the one on Boxing Day along the North Coast Road near the lookout. Whenever there is sustained rainfall, they added, you can count on landslides taking place.

Yesterday, the road was opened to the public even though an Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM) release said it was only open to residents of the area.

Bake and shark vendors continue to provide a service to the handful of visitors although they do not have pipeborne water at their booths. They have had to employ people to fetch water from the sea so as to flush toilets at the public restrooms and changing facilities.

Owners of businesses that were moved from what is now the car park are hoping the restoration project which began last July and was scheduled to be completed in September, but which is ongoing, can be finished in time for Carnival.

Seuchan “Bobby” Singh owner of Eden’s Sweet and Sour Hot Spot and custodian of the Maracas Bay Look Out said, landslides are a common feature in the area and they must be addressed to meet the needs of service providers and tourists if Government is serious about tourism. However, he said he was impressed with the round the clock work done by the Ministry of Works and Transport get the road opened.

President of the Maracas Bay Vendors Association, owner of Natalie’s Bake and Shark and Maracas resident Festus Imasekha said that for three days, the entire community was cut off from the country due to one landslide.

During the Christmas season, he said, vendors were depending on Trinis living abroad and who came home for the yuletide season to give them business. “We invested heavily but made nothing. Now are we banking on Carnival,” he said.

He added that because the restoration work has been ongoing for months, there is no pipeborne water at food stalls and, “If the Ministry of Health visits us here, they will close us down because eating establishments are required to have running water.” Other small time businesspeople from those who rent beach chairs to craftsmen, all said the landslides as well as the snail’s pace of restoration work on the Maracas facilitiees have severely hit them in the pocket.

When Newsday visited the Bay yesterday, a man was seen dipping a bucket into the sea to collect water. Vendors said that people are being paid to collect sea water to be used to flush toilets.

A vendor said that all it takes for Maracas Bay to lose its international reputation as Trinidad’s most popular beach destination, is one landslide on the North Coast to send a busload of tourists over the mountain. “And when that happens, tourism here is done,” the vendor said as he called for Government to implement a permanent solution to the landslides rather than simply clear away rubble from the roadway, whenever one occurs.

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"Tales of woe at scenic Maracas Bay, sea water to flush toilets"

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