THE EDITOR: Those responsible for the management of Diego Martin is a mystery to most. Sometimes out of the blue the river is cleaned and attempts are made to fix the many depressions that have developed in the riverbed and sides over the years. Then the river is left abandoned again for months with shrubs growing out of the cracks in the walls and the entire river is covered with weed.

Perhaps what is more distressing is the recent development where just a mere hundred metres from the new sign commemorating the borough of Diego Martin, a squatter has built a shelter on the side of the highway. This is a major concern as the area is prone to vehicles running off the highway and into the river. There is therefore the possibility that at any time a vehicle can veer off the highway and cause serious injury or even death to the occupant of the shelter.

The shoulders usually allow drivers an area for correction if their vehicle temporarily goes out of control. But simply veering off the highway can result in harm to the occupant of the illegal dwelling. This shelter along with its clothesline and utensils is in full view of whoever is responsible for the management of the Diego Martin Highway. One then must conclude that those people do not care about the life of the squatter or the people that use the highway.

The neglect of the Diego Martin Highway is perhaps best accentuated by the constant stream of water that enters the out-bound side of the highway just after Crystal Stream. That water has been flowing on to the highway for months. The water can only be from two possible sources: a clogged drain that forces the water on to the highway or a leaking pipe.

Either way this is something to be addressed urgently as the water has already caused many vehicles to hydroplane and, consequently, crash into the barriers that divide the highway. The barriers in that area are filled with cracks and evidence of crashes. One imagines that only after a death occurs will this be given some attention.

It is difficult to conclude that there is any one sensibly managing the highway or the river that runs along it. Almost daily there are workers cutting the grass that grows along the highway. One does not need an academic degree to conclude that the grass must be bagged and taken away after cutting. Instead, it is left along the highway in small piles that eventually allows for new grass growth in the many piles of grass and dirt.

Is it too much to ask for some level of concern and some attention to the little things that can improve Diego Martin?

STEVE ALVAREZ

via e-mail

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