Amandala has made several attempts to talk to Arnaldo “Pappy” Peña, who allegedly purchased and has begun “filling” a property at Mile 1 ¾ on the Western Highway, following allegations that his filling is causing terrible flooding in the area, making it difficult for neighbors to get out of their yard.
Yesterday, we went to the area where the Peña’s filling is causing the problem.
We spoke with Denys Bradley, Sr., retired owner of Bradley’s Boatyard, who said that he has been living in the area for about 41 years and never before had his yard been under so much water. Even in cases when it would rain for a long period, for example, a couple of days, the water would eventually run off after a couple days of sunlight. However, since Peña’s lot, adjacent to his, which is opposite Leslie’s Refrigeration, has been filled with many loads of sand, the water has nowhere to go.
Bradley said he had water rise to about 6 inches in his storeroom, which is located in his lower flat.
He said that he knew that the lot was on sale for almost ten years, but only a couple weeks ago, he noticed that Peña was on the property with a tractor that was stationed there for three days. Then the trucks with the loads of sands began to flow in, one after the other. They dumped the loads on the land after they covered the drain so that they were able to drive in.
Bradley believes that the problem is that Peña’s lot is too soggy for reclamation because of the rate the sand is sinking. Peña’s workmen even began even cutting down mangroves located at the rear of the lot, destroying a bird sanctuary that was located there, said Bradley. This is an environmental problem that needs attending to, he said, because poor people will have major problems with their lots.
Amandala also spoke with a neighbor, a retired teacher, who said that she has been living there for 44 years, and have never had such a problem, either. At this time, her back yard has about 2 inches of water that has been there for a while, and she can only exit her yard through her driveway, because her front gate is also under two inches of water.
Her downstairs, which is living quarters, was also under water, she added.
There needs to be a proper drainage system planned for the area, she said, so that they could use the canal located behind her property. The canal runs through to “dike” lagoon on Fabers Road Extension, and can be used as a way to get rid of the floodwater.
Amandala was told that even the residents of Fabers Road and the residents of Iguana Street Extension and surrounding streets are suffering from the same water problems. Many residents have problems getting in and out of their yards. Kids going to school have to carry their shoes in their hands and put them on after they have crossed the large pools of water.
Both Bradley and the neighbor said that she hopes that the problem can be attended to quickly.