With heavy rains battering their home and a leaking water line eroding their property, a Pointe-a-Pierre family said their home is on the verge of crumbling down a hill.
John Mendoza and his family stood in the rain yesterday as they monitored a landslip between their home and the neighbour at Plaisance Park.
Mendoza told the T&T Guardian that the 15-inch Petrotrin water line which transfers water from Claxton Bay to the Pointe-a-Pierre refinery had sprung several leaks in the past two years. Despite several complaints to Petrotrin, he said nothing much was done.
He said children were playing in the yard when the earth started moving, taking with it coconut and fig trees. Inside his house, the tiles the living room had begun to crack and lines ran from ceiling to floor in their bedrooms.
“So far, all they did was to put a cap on the pipe and a little piece of thin sheet. The pipe is not leaking from one position, it’s five or six different leaks onto the ground. That patch up that they did, cannot do anything really.
“If anything is not done soon, the entire house will be gone. Just like the coconut tree, just like the fig tree, everything will be gone. The next step is to contact the EMA and our attorneys and see what legal advice we can get as to what to do about the situation.” Mendoza said.
Already a shed at the neighbour’s house has begun slipping and the landslip is just a few feet away from the exterior wall. Near their home, the water could be seen spraying from the pipe, causing several streams to run through both properties.
Mendoza’s wife, Lisa Cooper said when she got fed up of the situation on Friday; she reported the problem to Petrotrin police.
“I can’t remember the guy I spoke to but what he told me was not to let the media be aware of it and I don’t need to let the public be aware of it. He said they would visit the site on Friday evening or Saturday morning but up to now I have not seen them,” Cooper said.
Mendoza’s house is unfinished and he said the contractor stalled construction because of the leaks two years ago. He said all he wants is for Petrotrin to be fair. Either repair the line and the landslip or provide somewhere safe for his family.
Acting corporate communications manager at Petrotrin, George Comissiong said that he was unaware of the issue and will check on it today.