By Anesta Henry
Garbage has been piling up across communities in northern parishes over the past three weeks, as the Sanitation Service Authority (SSA) pulled several trucks off the road for maintenance.
When Barbados TODAY visited several St James communities on Friday, residents lamented that their overflowing garbage bins were not only unsightly, but in some instances, have also been creating a foul odour and attracting flies.
Many of the residents said since they were not advised about the reasons for the delays in garbage collection, they have been calling the authorities demanding answers and immediate relief.
SSA’s Communications Specialist, Carl Alf Padmore, who said the authority was aware that there are collection issues in St Lucy, St Peter, St James, St Thomas and parts of St Andrew, has assured residents that help is on its way.
He said approximately six trucks which service the north of the island have been off the road.
Padmore said while two of them are expected to be back in service soon, in the meantime, trucks from other routes have been reassigned to help clear the backlog in the affected areas.
“We have been receiving lots of complaints. The issue is that we have a number of trucks in the workshop and this has to do with the supply chain. But we are trying to rectify that situation. We are going to be doubling down on collections this weekend and we really do want to apologise to those persons who live in the north of the country.
“Not that the rest of Barbados is not important. We know that there is some haemorrhaging in some parts of Barbados, but there is a severe one in the north of the island and again we want to apologise to them and to say that we are working,” Padmore added.
Overflowing garbage bins at West Terrace, St James.
Noting that SSA’s Operations Manager Michael Nicholls and his team have been working around the clock in an effort to rectify the issue, Padmore said he is unable to say when residents in areas affected would have all their garbage collected.
He said the process of removing the garbage from all the communities affected could flow into next week.
“We want to say to Barbadians that come next week things should be levelled out. I don’t want to give you a specific date, but we have started from today,” he said.
West Terrace resident, Orlando Taylor, told Barbados TODAY that watching the garbage pile-up is an unpleasant sight. He said even though residents are thankful for the Government-issued collection bins, it is frustrating not knowing when they would be emptied.
“The problem will be exacerbated when they do the collections and all of the liquid from the garbage spills into the streets. That liquid is going to have the streets smelly and residents are going to have to deal with that stench. This garbage has been piling up for three weeks.
“From early on, they should have communicated to us what is happening and let people know not to put certain things in the bins. On Thursday, a DLP [Democratic Labour Party] spokesperson called in on the radio and highlighted the issue and now we are hearing that something is being done about it,” Taylor said.
One resident at Haynesville, St James, who requested anonymity, said over the past week, she has called the SSA multiple times inquiring when a garbage truck would be sent to the area.
Admitting that the situation is upsetting, the resident said at this time the only thing she can do is to pray and hope relief comes her way soon.
“I called them up this morning and they said a truck should pass anytime soon. I don’t know if the truck broke down or what happened, but this is really upsetting. Look at all those flies around that garbage, and don’t forget about the sickness that is going around. I don’t like hospitals so I am always keeping around me clean,” the Haynesville resident said.
Residents at Oxnards Heights St James also lamented that it is time the garbage is removed, particularly since it is natural for people to continually accumulate waste, and a new week is approaching.
