Letter To The Editor

The Editor
The Anguillian

Dear Sir

During and after the demolition of buildings adjacent to our home, we have been constantly bombarded with hordes of dust. Had it not been for the intervention of officers from the environmental Health Department, several piles of dirt placed not far from our home would still pose serious health risks to my entire family.

Since the year two thousand and four (2004) we have been experiencing serious problems with the cistern water viz. unfit for human consumption. Subsequently, a senior Environmental Health Officer determined, upon inspection of the cistern, that the water therein was brackish and therefore not suitable for human use.

On only one (1) occasion has Viceroy cleaned my cistern and since then the situation has been the same as it had been subsequent to this one cleaning. We were promised four (4) cases of drinking water on a weekly basis (a mere drop in the bucket) but to our dismay even this agreement has not been honoured. It seems as though the residents of the West End Community are being held hostage (literally) when one considers the prompt action taken by the very same Government to assist the residents of George Hill during the airport expansion. Are we all not Anguillians?! What has become of the ‘New Anguilla Dream’?

As the old saying goes: “a promise is a comfort to a fool.”

Cold hard facts: 1) On Viceroy’s insistence, an air condition unit was installed in our house and lo and behold we were informed that we would have to foot the electricity bills.
2) The vibrations and noise created by the constant use of heavy equipment on the site is virtually unbearable. Our home has the cracks to show for their efforts. It is high time that we vent our anger and frustration. This has been a continuous problem for over a year and no one knows how long this will continue.

I can recall a day when two house keepers – paid by Viceroy – were cleaning my residence and realized the severity of the effects of the vibrations of heavy equipment on my home. They remarked “boy dey gon mash up your house”... I cried openly. The following day my nine-year old son was sick and upon returning home from work I found that he was been visibly shaken by the effects of the heavy equipment as they carried out the work – he was worried that the house might crumble.

Further, we have had no recourse but to throw out our rugs etc which were so full of dirt that to continue to try to clean them were fruitless. Our dining room table, is usually so covered with dust, we actually had to eliminate all table coverings. Our living room set is a health hazard for all the dust that it had gathered. We are unable to open our windows in an effort to reduce the dirt getting in. We change our bed sheets every other day. The water, in which we bath, itches our skin. How much more must we bear.

Since the inception of Viceroy, what was known as the “Barnes Bay Road” was dug up. After the demolition of the old road it is quite obvious that we are suddenly living in a construction zone so much so that recently, my son – on his way to West End Primary School – accosted by a supervisor on the construction site for trespassing. Apparently, Viceroy is trying to force the residents into moving. Maybe it is high time that my family relocates but at whose expense?

These are some of the burning issues that have been plaguing several persons in West End, and it is my genuine wish that after today, there can be an amicable solution or else may the powers that be take a stand.


Respectfully
Convent Carty
Maureen Carty
Ancel Carty

Tormented West End Residents

Cc: Chief Minister
Viceroy
Media
The Governor