Two villages in Flanagin Town in Central Trinidad were cut off after residents felled trees and blocked the road during a protest over bad roads on Monday.
The villages were left without electricity as the falling trees ripped down power lines.
T&TEC crews responded to isolate live wires to prevent a potential tragedy in the rural community known for its towering teak trees at the side of the road.
School children and people heading to work were unable to get out while school meals prepared for primary and preschools could not reach the children in time.
Residents of Los Atajos and Brasso Venado said the deplorable condition of the roads was not only dangerous, but it is also damaging their vehicles.
Driver Krishna Soodeen who works with the lunch centre in the area which provides lunches for 14 schools in the Central Trinidad area, said they were unable to deliver 780 breakfast meals and 1,080 lunches were delayed.
Complaining about the several landslips, potholes and depressions in the road, he said, “We know they are saying the Government don’t have the money right now but if the Government could at least help us to full up some of these holes where they will be passable for vehicles.”
She recalled that an ambulance which was taking her 90-year-old mother to the hospital ran off the road.
“We had to winch out the vehicles so we could take her to get medical attention.”
The driver appealed to Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan for help.
“This road is a very important road for the residents of Brasso Venado and Los Atajos. It is something we desperately need and we desperately asking the minister in charge to do something for us please.”
Councillor Henry Awong commended the residents for their actions. “Apparently this is needed to get the ears and attention of those in authority, namely the Minister of Works, because this road, in particular, falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Works Highways Division.”
He said numerous complaints to the ministry’s Brasso District office but they have been met with “one story, that they don’t have material, they don’t have the equipment, their manpower is depleted, they have no funding.”
He said over 300 residents, a school and even teachers who live out of the area are being affected by the road condition.
He said taxi and maxi taxis refuse to work in the area and the fire tenders may not be able to pass or reach in a timely manner in the event of a fire in the area. Other areas along the Brasso Tamana Road and Telemaque Road were blocked with trees, but they were removed by a crew supervised by T&TEC and the police.
Residents, however, promised to intensify their protest action if their plight is ignored.