Gov’t Spends $60 Million on Emergency Road Repairs in Six Parishes

The Government has spent some $60 million on emergency road repairs in six parishes, which were affected by flood rains, between February 2 and 12.
Speaking at Wednesday’s (March 4) post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, Minister of Transport and Works, Michael Henry, said that preliminary estimates indicate that some $830,000,000 would be needed to conduct road repairs and river training in the affected parishes.
The bulk of $592,000,000 was required for such works in the parish of St. Mary; while the damage in Portland is estimated at $196, 910, 000; St. Ann, $30,425, 000; St. Andrew, $5, 000,000 and St. Catherine, $4, 200,000.
Minister Henry noted that some areas were still receiving rain, while there were accessibility issues with others, where the necessary heavy equipment could not yet be brought in, due to breakaways.
He used the opportunity to stress the importance of keeping drains and gullies clean, while noting that the denuding of hillsides had contributed to flooding.
On Thursday (March 5), the Works Minister will be touring gullies and drains in Kingston and St. Andrew with Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, to observe work under the $2.4 billion project to restore the Sandy Gully.