As you saw in the weather report earlier, for the next three days we should enjoy cooler temperatures as another tropical wave is expected to cross the country on Thursday. While the rains are providing much relief from what had been a sweltering September, it’s doing no good for the folks down south, because the temporary causeway at Kendall has washed away again!
It went out on Monday after the first bout of heavy rain. The Ministry of Works reports that a fifty foot span of gravel across the culverts is covered by three feet of water and some of the material has washed away making it impassable to motorists and pedestrians. Presently the BDF is ferrying people across by boat. Of course, that says nothing of the oil tankers, supply trucks and other heavy transports stranded on either side – effectively cutting off the lower third of the country. According to the Ministry of Works, material to replenish the surface is already at the site and the work will commence when the waters recede.
And while the level started to go down this morning, the Belize Weather Bureau reports that an additional seven inches of rain fell Tuesday night in the Stann Creek District and more rain is predicted for tonight and tomorrow. The Met Service says the weather will not start to improve until Friday or Saturday.
And while folks in the south are exasperated with the repeated flooding out of their only land connection to the rest of the country, the Ministry of Works says there are still plans to proceed with a medium term solution to replace the causeway with a modular bridge structure. It will be erected by the U.S. military but the material which includes a support and foundation are not expected to be in Belize until late next week. The long term solution which includes the construction of a permanent bridge at the site will not commence until two years from now.
