Clarendon residents fearful of flood waters

Horace Fisher, Star Writer

With a severe drought affecting most areas of Jamaica, scores of Rocky Point’s residents in Clarendon are living in knee- deep flood waters, an infestation of mosquitoes and are fearful that they and their belongings will soon get washed out to sea.

The worried residents, pointing to a massive fish kill in the community just days ago, complained that the Rio Minho river is now blocked, and the rising water has been flooding the homes of hundreds of residents along the West End Road for the last three weeks.

The affected residents, pointed to loss of domestic animals, utensils, clothing and other personal items to the water. They lamented that calls to their member of parliament, Rudyard Spencer; the National Work Agency (NWA); and the National Environment and Planning Agency have so far gone unanswered.

“The water come up almost my house, look around the back, everything dead, even the animals; we can’t go through this anymore, a pure mosquitoes down here, it is unbearable,” said Ivy Pryce, a shopkeeper from the area.

Councillor for the Rocky Point Division, Winston Maragh, explained that because of the drought, the river has lost some of its velocity, which rendered it unable to naturally clear the blockage at the point where the river meets the sea at Rocky Point.

“There is a sand bar blocking the river from discharging into the sea. Clearing the sand bar will require a tractor, but when I called the NWA parish manager, I am being told that there isn’t any money to send the tractor here,” Councilor Maragh insisted.

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Clarendon residents fearful of flood waters

Fearful - Lime Hall plagued by thieves

BY RENAE DIXON Observer staff reporter dixonr@jamaicaobserver.com

Monday, February 03, 2014    

Residents in Lime Hall and surrounding communities in St Ann are calling on the police to begin conducting regular patrols in the area to stem the massive hike in robberies.

The residents, who requested anonymity, said they are living in fear.

“The crime rate in the community is very nasty and needs to be addressed,” one resident told the Jamaica Observer North East, adding that both businesses and families have been affected by the large number of robberies taking place.

Recently, the community was left without Internet and landline service after thieves reportedly cut and stole several cable lines belonging to a communication company. This resulted in several homes, schools and businesses being left without service for days.

The company reportedly lost millions as a result of the vandalism of the lines.

Persons say they are now fearing for their lives in the community as several residents have been attacked and robbed while at their homes and on the streets.

According to residents, the most recent incident occurred on January 20 when a watchman was attacked and severely chopped by robbers at a home near Clamstead, shortly after midnight. Reports are that a group of men armed with machetes entered the premises and attacked the watchman when he failed to meet their demands. He received multiple chop wounds to the body and was rushed to the St Ann’s Bay Hospital before being transferred to a Kingston hospital.

The men, however, broke into a storeroom on the property and made off with several household items.

In another robbery, residents said a house in the Laycock area was robbed. The perpetrators are said to have removed a lock from one of the doors and forced their way inside the house. A sound system and a television set were among several items taken.

The owner was not at home but a caretaker who had gone to a nearby shop returned, just in time, to see the thieves with some of the items in a motorcar while another man was observed running from the house.

Farmers in the area say they are also suffering at the hands of criminals. Last Sunday, one farmer said he lost 19 bunches of plantains to thieves while another farmer lost bananas, plantains, peppers, among other items.

“We would like the relevant authorities to do something tangible to correct the situation,” another resident said.

The robberies, the residents said, have been occurring for some time now.

In one incident last year, gunmen lured a truck operator into the community under the pretext that they needed to purchase cooking gas. When the truck arrived at the location, the driver was robbed of a large sum of cash.

Churches have also not been spared. In one incident, a water tank was stolen from the roof of a church building. A nearby shop and bar suffered a similar fate.

“They cut the lines installed to the drum and let out the water to get free access to steal the drum,” one resident explained.

There have also been reports of the theft of several motor vehicles in the area. This, as thieves recently removed four tyres from a car in the Sandy Grove Area, and several others from a parked truck.

Several female residents are also fearful after two women were held up by masked men in the community. In another incident, residents said the women ran into a nearby home and sought help. The masked men reportedly escaped in nearby bushes.

While the residents are concerned about the crime, some residents believe some people in the community may have information to assist the police in capturing the culprits but are refusing to come forward for fear of being labelled informers.

“People afraid of being called informers,” one resident insisted. “A lot of strange men lurking in the community and we don’t know where they come from,” another resident said.

The man said he believes a revival of the Police Youth Club in the community and the establishment of a Neighbourhood Watch could help to curb the criminal activities in the area.

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Fearful - Lime Hall plagued by thieves

Ellington moves to calm fearful Linstead residents

COMMISSIONER of Police Owen Ellington yesterday assured residents of Linstead, St Catherine, that there will be continuous security presence in the community to restore law and order following the recent spate of murders, including the killing of two men yesterday.

The men who were killed in separate incidents in the community are Tyrone Murray, 28, and Garth Parkes, 42, both of Bottom Cedar Lane in Banbury.Reports from the Linstead Police are that about 2:00 am, three men gained Access to Murray’s home and chopped him several times.About 6:30 am the lawmen were summoned to another area of the community, where residents reported hearing explosions. Parkes’ body was found in a room of his home with several gunshot wounds.Following the incidents Ellington, along with the commanding officer of the St Catherine North Division and senior investigators, toured sections of the community.A statement from the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) later said that investigations have revealed that an internal gang feud has developed over the sharing of the proceeds from criminal activities. This dispute between the warring factions, the CCN alleged, has resulted in three murders, including the two yesterday morning.Commissioner Ellington, meanwhile, said that there will be a significant increase in police presence in the area until those who are responsible are caught and brought to justice.He said that the police are convinced that residents of the affected communities have information about those who are involved in the crimes being committed and is appealing to them to share such information with the police.Detectives from the Major Investigation Task Force and the St Catherine North Division are investigating the murders and, Ellington said the residents will be informed of the progress being made.In addition, the commissioner is beseeching the family members and friends of the perpetrators to co-operate with investigators to ensure that offenders are brought to justice.He also urging persons behind the murders to turn themselves in to the Spanish Town or Linstead police.In the meantime, detectives from the St Catherine North Police Division have listed 18-year-old Lavar Najaite Reid, otherwise called ‘Var’ of Commodore district in Linstead, as wanted.Reid is of dark complexion, slim build, about 185 centimetres (6 feet 1 inch) tall and has a scar above his right knee.He is wanted for robbery with aggravation and illegal possession of firearm and ammunition, the police said.

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Ellington moves to calm fearful Linstead residents