Up to two months ago, residents of Libertville, Rio Claro, had the convenience of purchasing processed chicken from Mohanie Mohammed's poultry depot. But as water formed a pool on the road, spilling over into her yard, she had to shut down the business. To make matters worse, there is no retaining wall and the erosion caused by the water has caused the house to crack.
Mohammed and her husband, Nazrad, a mechanic are worried their home will soon collapse. They fear for their lives. Mohammed is appealing to the relevant authorities and MP Winston Peters to intervene before disaster strikes. "It's about five years ago water started to settle on the road and it built up a pool...When cars passing, it splash and it wet up the road," she said.
"Half of the water was going in the land, and half coming down here...But more and more water start coming down," she told the T&T Guardian. "The road started to deteriorate. They clean out the road and the land started to crack. All that water coming down, my house started to crack. It's going on long. I can't take it." The situation has worsened within the last three years, Mohammed said. She also has to endure dust and when trucks drive past, the house shakes.
"You would swear it is an earthquake," she said. "I am so worried about my safety and my grandchildren who are here with me sometimes. "When the water settles in the pool, it could cause mosquitoes to hatch." Mohammed says she can't sleep peacefully at night, because she's terrified that her home will suddenly collapse. "I will have to scamper to safety...I will have to make a quick dash," she said.
Mohammed no longer even tries to beautify the wood and concrete house, although the bay windows, fancy tiles and immaculately clean toilet and bath bear testimony to the work this once house-proud woman had started. She said: "I had to stop the work on my house. Who does not like to keep a nice house?"
Pointing to the white hut which once served as her poultry shop, now hemmed in by a layer of rubble, she lamented: "I had to close it down. People used to come and buy processed chicken. I lost about $30,000 to $40,000. Now I have to depend on my husband soley."
$500,000 retaining wall
Mohammed and her son-in-law, Rodney Mohammed, feel the solution is a retaining wall and a box drain. Rodney explained: "They came and they took measurements. Because of the constant waterfall, the main burst. "People in the district started to protest. If you pass out there, the water run straight through. We feel they have to build a retaining wall. It would cost about $500,000."
Mohammed said about 17 years ago, the authorities constructed a basket- massive boulders encased in wire mesh intended to prevent the land from moving. "They need to construct a drain...It only have the makeshift basket," she said. "There is a big pool in the middle of the road and the water was washing all over the stones. It was running down. They need to build a retaining wall. They cannot expect us to do the Government work."
Two Fridays ago, while Moruga residents were protesting, Rio Claro residents raised their concerns by blocking the road and burning tyres. Mohammed said there were several parts of the community badly in need of repairs and proper infrastructure. She said they met with Peters and he told them he didn't know what they were protesting about. "It's a temporary thing," he reportedly said.
Efforts to contact Peters were futile. 'No to quick fixes' Snow cone vendor Wayne Fredericks, fondly known as Uncle Smucky, had to dismount from his bike to navigate a rough patch on the road. He said: "I'd like the Government to fix the retaining wall as soon as possible. It is really terrible. It's a whole ruction on the bike. Today it was a little better, but during the protest it was worse."
Evidence of protests at Tabaquite
Along the Tabaquite Main Road, there were several mounds of rubble, discarded oil drums and burnt tyres. Trees were singed by heat from fires set by residents as they vented their anger at the lack of adequate representation and services. Several villagers told the T&T Guardian that they were fed up of the bad roads and wanted to see improvements in their community.
