$160-m repair bill for Portland, St Mary
FOLLOWING two days of torrential rains, the brunt of which affected the parishes of Portland and St Mary, Government has put the price tag for the initial clean-up for all affected roads at $33 million.
Preliminary estimates for the permanent works in St Mary, meanwhile, stand at $125 million.
At yesterday’s post Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House in St Andrew, Information Minister Sandrea Falconer said the heavy rains on January 19 and 20 “did significant damage to about 30 corridors in the parishes of Portland and St Mary”.
She said that in addition to the damage to houses and personal property in the parishes, the road network, as well as retaining walls and drainage systems were also affected.
Falconer told members of the media that while Portland had the largest number of affected roads, the worst damage took place in St Mary where all the reported roads were rendered impassable due to fallen trees, washed down silt, scoured surfaces and a collapsed wall.
She said the National Works Agency has been able to reopen all but one corridor to small vehicles.
“The outstanding roadway that remains impassable is that from Spring Head to Little Bay where a retaining wall collapsed. Engineering designs will have to be done and costs determined based on those designs before any remedial intervention can take place,” Falconer said.
She explained, meanwhile, that the preliminary estimates for the permanent works does not include works on the Grants Town Road or that from Little Bay to Jacks River.
“Both of these corridors will need design details before the costs can be determined,” she said.