The flames that engulfed the reduced Lower Estate Quarry are gone, but months later fumes, likened to an acrid, chemical smell, are still being experienced by residents in its environs.
Residents of Lower Estate, St Michael, and also Airy Hill and Rowan’s, St George, are questioning why.
At The Palm, Lower Estate, St George, a father of a four-year-old son and five-month-old babies said he had to take the babies over to a grandmother’s house out of fear of having them in that environment.
While choosing not to give his name, the young man who recently completed his house and moved in November last year said: “It is good that we have the grandparents nearby that we can take them over to, but the up and down, back and forth is not ideal,” he said.
A few houses away Montex Miller said after her son spent so much to build a house, they could not enjoy it and were like prisoners since they had to keep their doors and windows closed all the time.
She said the smell was really bad last week and over the Easter weekend it was almost suffocating. Her five-year-old grandson had been affected by a cough, runny nose and sneezing, while she had to use antibiotics and nasal spray.
Candace Depaul who also lives at Rowans, St George, said the fumes and whatever gases were emanating from the quarry were affecting her health.
“I get home about 9 p.m. and leave home at 6 a.m., but from the time I get home I get hoarse from a sinus drip that stops once I am back at work”.Â
However, one Airy Hill resident called for patience while the owner Anderson Cherry dealt with the matter: “He [Cherry] said he is going to move it, but it can’t just happen so.”
While refusing to give her name, she questioned why Barbadians were so quick to jump on the bandwagon and crucify each other.Â
“If it was a white man, them did not going to be getting on so, we too like to fight we own. I aint fretting myself; I will give him some more time to get the situation sort out,” she said.
However, businesses in the Lower Estate industrial area said their staff was being affected and they had to be footing the cost to keep the work environment amenable. Euclyne Holder of Carter’s General Store said they had to pay a local company to clean the filters three times a week and was also tasked with purchasing air fresheners to spray in the store’s aisles. Even after that he said they noticed a fall in sales.
Holder said he had a cashier on sick leave, and though they were trying to keep staff comfortable, on days when it is very unbearable some staff had to leave early.
Annalise Corea, office manager of Crane & Equipment Ltd, said they had to install an air purifier, which also had to be cleaned every three weeks instead of the recommended two months.
She expressed concern about staff who worked outdoor and only had dust masks for relief.
Supervisor at the quarry, Glenroy Bispham, who has been doing daily videos which he shared with the media and other stakeholders, said the only thing going into the quarry was rock and soil, which they used to cover the area where the fires had occurred.
However, owner of the quarry, Anderson Cherry, said they were working daily with the relevant ministries to have the matter resolved.
“I believe it will come to an end soon,” Cherry said.
Cherry said they had written the Ministry of Health to get an extension on the four weeks they were originally given to remove the waste from the quarry. This week they were cutting up metals to be packed in containers and shipped out of the island. The tyres will be removed afterward. (LK)
