By Bill W. Cooper
Several residents of the Borough of New Kru Town, which falls in District 16, are said to be living in constant fear as a result of the fast-moving remorseless sea erosion which continues to destroy many homes, thus making several residents homeless.
Our reporter, who toured the affected areas yesterday along the Lagoon belt, gathered from residents that if nothing is done to avert the situation, as it is with the construction of costal defense walls which is preventing the D. Tweh High School and other areas; they foresee that the sea will anytime soon cover the entire Borough.
Some of the residents told our reporter that sometimes ago, the government embarked on the construction of walls to curtail the erosion, but the project did not extend to the areas being affected today, thus making life for them in recent unbearable.
Speaking to this paper, the National Housing Authority (NHA) Managing Director, Cecelia Coffey Brown’s mother, Elizabeth Coffey whose house that will anytime be washed away by the sea said that the washing away of other residents’ homes by the sea erosion in recent time now poses serious panic to the entire Borough of New Kru Town.
Madam Coffey, in tears, lamented that due to the threat persistently posed by the sea, she hardly sleeps in her house, noting that whenever the sea wave roars, it normally goes in her bedroom and has damaged many of her properties. ‘The foundation of my house is presently in a precarious situation including the roofing which is rapidly being blown away,” Madam Coffey explained.
She further called of the District Representative, the government through the President’s office and other well-meaning Liberians to see reason in coming to their rescue by finding solution to the perpetual destruction of their homes by sea erosion.
Another affected resident only identified as Throble intoned that the place the sea has reached now was far away, stressing that if the government doesn’t do anything by addressing the situation at the soonest possible time, he foresees many residents made homeless.
According to him, they are now living in absolute fear especially during this rainy season when the sea normally gets furious, adding, “We are now vulnerable, and the government’s talk about coastal defense project was only meant to protect the D-Tweh High School and not everyone along the coast.”
He alluded, “As we speak, I have been made homeless and presently refuged by a friend. The sea erosion has now cleared away more than 60 houses including my house and our children places of learning. Who knows what will happen within the next three to four months from now?”
Throble further stated they have on numerous occasions informed their Representative, Dickson Sebo about the sea erosion they are confronted with, averring that though he promised them as residents to address the issues, but failed to live up to his promise, while calling on President Weah and his government to hastily address their plight.
When contacted, the Borough of New Kru Town Governor, Moses Doe Weah said that he could not speak to the matter on grounds that modalities were being worked on to address the Borough residents’ plight.