Oasis Greens residents frustrated over collapsed road

Oasis Greens, Chaguanas, residents complain about the slow pace of repair of a damaged road and sewage line at Calistoga Drive, on Sunday. - Marvin Hamilton
Oasis Greens, Chaguanas, residents complain about the slow pace of repair of a damaged road and sewage line at Calistoga Drive, on Sunday. - Marvin Hamilton

RESIDENTS of Oasis Greens in Chaguanas, said they are frustrated that repairs to a collapsed road at Calistoga Drive have not been completed, four months after the incident happened. They also complained about other damage their homes have experienced as a result of the repairs not being completed.

The residents expressed their frustrations to the media on Sunday as they appealed to the Housing Development Corporation (HDC), which owns Oasis Greens, to resolve the situation as soon as possible.

Natasha Arcia said she had Housing Minister Pennelope Beckles' phone number and sent her a video of the collapsed road when it first happened.

"I want it repaired. Today is four months since the place is exactly like this. It's just frustrating."

Arcia said Beckles had visited the area and said the problem had to be fixed.

Laverne Alexander said, while she was not directly affected by the situation, she found it frustrating as well.

"Persons usually pass through my yard to get to the front because they cannot access the road."

The HDC, she continued, had contractors working on the road.

"It still has not been rectified. So at this point we are very frustrated. We can't take it any more."

Alexander added that residents were feeling neglected by the HDC.

Leslie Harris said even while the road has not been repaired, residents still have to pay their mortgages and bills as usual.

"Pipes burst under the houses because of the construction. Even inside of the houses, we are seeing structural damage in terms of cracks in the walls."

Harris described the situation as tiring.

"We need the HDC and contractor to come together and bring this to completion."

He said residents were uncertain whether the underground works, including repairs to a sewer, were completed so that repairs to the road could start.

"This is beyond the point of frustration. The residents should not be subject to this. We would want them to mash the gas on this."

Harris recalled residents were initially told the repairs would take three weeks. He hoped HDC and the contractor would keep residents in the loop and complete the repairs as soon as possible.

Dianne James Mahadeosingh showed a fire hose she was using to drain sewer water out of her house.

Residents point to a sewage leak behind their apartments on Angseri Avenue, Oasis Greens, Sunday. - Marvin Hamilton

"One morning I got up and the downstairs toilet was just overflowing and running sewer water. Mahadeosingh said she had to try and fix the problem herself because no one came to help her.

Anthony James said the roadway was one of two access points to the area. He was concerned about the second access route being damaged while the roadway is still to be repaired.

In a statement on Saturday, the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) said it was not responsible for the collapsed road.

WASA said a daily newspaper report which claimed  it did work on the road to repair a sewer problem was inaccurate. WASA said the HDC sometimes asks it to help clear chokes in the sewer system at Oasis Greens.

But WASA added while it offers this assistance to the HDC occasionally, "the operations and maintenance of the sewer system and all wastewater infrastructure at Oasis Greens, Chaguanas is solely the responsibility of the HDC."

WASA said, after further investigations, it was discovered that the HDC hired a contractor to repair the damaged main sewer line but the contractor did not complete the job.

WASA said the HDC was aware of the situation and is making arrangements to correct the problem in the shortest possible time.

In a statement, the HDC said the video  being circulated on social media was taken last month when when it was upgrading the sewer system at Calistoga.

"Most of the sewer work was completed, and repairs to the road and one manhole should be finalised within two weeks."

The HDC said the completion of the work depended on favourable weather and apologised to residents for any inconvenience caused by the repair work. (With reporting by Marvin Hamilton)

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