Corrective works commence on collapsed Linden road

Dec 07, 2021 News

Kaieteur News – Corrective works have commenced on the retaining walls of a major thoroughfare in the Silvertown community, of Wismar Linden, which collapsed on Tuesday last—two days after it was constructed.

Corrective works being carried out yesterday on the collapsed retainer wall

Approximately 100 feet of the 1,800 feet (ft) retaining wall that was constructed to alleviate flooding in the community is now being repaired by contractor, David Sugrim of D&R Construction Company.
The 16 ft. wide road was completed on November 28, to the tune of $11M. Sugrim was awarded the contract by the Regional Democratic Council (RDC), Region 10.
Regional Executive Officer (REO), Dwight John, said that the road was constructed and retainers were added to alleviate flooding in the area. It was opined by many that the collapse was as a result of substandard work, executed by the contractor.
One such resident making the claim is Regional Chairman of Region 10, Deron Adams.
Adams said, the contractor was called out by the Works Committee for the substandard work, which was observed while performing field inspections.
The contractor and REO however, rubbished these claims and instead said it was as a result of the compaction and the earth’s pressure.
Residents maintain however, that the wall was constructed on a void foundation and it was done hurriedly.
REO John yesterday said, he along with his engineers, inspected the corrective works being carried out and is pleased with the quality of work. He said it has been delayed somewhat because of the inclement weather. The road, he said, was built because the community was prone to flooding.
“We would have had a very low road, which was prone to flooding for many, many years. What we did was to raise the wall so that we can get a higher road. The retaining wall was done from one end to the other end of the road, but as a result of pressure, the highest end of it collapsed, which is about 100 feet of 1,800 feet of the entire wall,” John explained.
To ensure the collapse does not reoccur, REO John said support braces will now be added. “Throughout the length of the road, we will be putting braces so that we can keep the wall in place because we will have heavy-duty trucks traversing this area from time to time, so we are trying to prevent anymore of this happening.”