FREEPORT, Grand Bahama, August 24, 2023 –Declaring that it holds the safety of the motoring and boating community of paramount importance and is taking necessary and decisive action to ensure public safety. the Lucaya Service Company Limited (LUSCO), in a statement Taino Bridge released today, said that following “a recent independent assessment, we were made aware of defects to the above deck pavement and concrete slabs on the underside of the bridge.”
“An initial assessment was conducted by the Building and Development Services Department (BDS) of The Grand Bahama Port Authority, Limited and out of an abundance of caution, the western half of the bridge will be closed to swiftly facilitate the necessary repairs,” said the statement released by Charisse Brown, CEO and Senior Legal Counsel of LUSCO.
The statement added: “The eastern half of the bridge will be converted to a dual carriageway to allow the public to safely traverse while we immediately begin the remediation process. We have already conducted the initial inspection. An independent engineering firm will be engaged within two weeks to prepare the scope of work, design and finalize the repair plan and timeline. We anticipate that repairs will commence within 4 to 6 weeks with the duration to be determined pending the scope of the work.
“We are in communication with Tamarind Development, who shares responsibility for the bridge and will be working with them to facilitate the repairs. We are engaging key stakeholders and have met with local government representatives and the Smiths Point Community. We also request for safety reasons that the boating community not utilize the waterway under the bridge to travel from east to west within the canal system. Boaters in the Fortune Bay area can exit the Fortune Bay Canal and navigate along the south shore of the island to the Bell Channel Bay entrance and vice versa until repairs have been completed.
“We understand and apologize for any frustration caused by the western half closure and have taken every measure to minimize the inconvenience to the public. LUSCO commits to having regular community updates as it relates to the progress of repairs. We ask that the public exercise caution and drive responsibly while accessing the bridge to ensure the safety of motorists and workers.
“Please stay tuned to our social media page for more updates.”
