Team of Engineers from UWI to look at Jack’s Wall

This country’s Chief Engineer Brent Bailey is to get guidance from the Engineering Department of the St. Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) on how to deal with the exposed embankment at Alex Jack’s property at Ratho Mill.{{more}}

In a telephone interview with SEARCHLIGHT on Wednesday, Bailey disclosed that at the request of Cabinet, he asked the Dean of Engineering at the UWI to provide the local Ministry of Transport and Works with some technical guidance.

“And we are basically proceeding along those lines,” said Bailey.

He said a team from the University of the West Indies will be sent here to assess (the) “remedial activities” that the Ministry is preparing for that area and to advise on whether those solutions are appropriate in this instance.

“Once they have given us their report then we will better know how to proceed,” said Bailey.

On Wednesday, August 12th, 2009, the Ministry of Transport and Works closed the portion of the Ratho Mill main road which runs past the Jack property.

Bailey explained that above the exposed embankment is another retaining wall, which had its foundation exposed by the slippage which occurred early last week. He said it is because of the perceived threat of the structures above the embankment why the road was closed.

Bailey has advised that the public use the Sugar Mill Inn by pass and the former Medical College bypass in the Ratho Mill area. He said if persons are travelling to Kingstown from North Central Windward and South Windward they can utilize roads such as the Vigie Highway, the Calder route or the Peruvian Vale route.

On Friday, September 19th, 2008, 67-year-old Patricia Jack-Bowman tragically lost her life when a huge section of the retaining wall broke and buried her car.(HN)