Another major bush fire started in the Northern Range this afternoon, this one along the Lady Young Road, near the loookout.
Members of the Police and Fire Service quickly responded. Traffic exiting Port of Spain from the St Ann's side of the Lady Young was blocked, and the Priority Bus Route was opened as an alternative exit route.
T&T Publishers and Broadcasters Association vice president Kiran Maharaj told the Guardian that the bush fire caused a traffic pile-up.
“The fire was on the road level and we were advising motorists to stay away from the Lady Young Road. There was a pile up of traffic near the lookout,” she said.
On Tuesday evening, there was a bush fire along the Diego Martin Highway nearby the river. Residents complained that fire tenders did not respond to extinguish the blaze.
But Acting Chief Fire officer Roosevelt Bruce said officers did respond to the threat posed.
“If we have any fire appliances there, it is because they are responding to ones that are more threatening. It is the season. We respond to the nature of the threat,” Bruce said.
Dry Season
In a separate release yesterday, the Water and Sewerage Authority said that dry season conditions were also taking a toll on water sources.
“TT is now past the peak of the 2015 dry season and the Authority has been able to maintain adequate supplies to most communities with the implementation of its Dry Season Water Management Plan, from as early as January 2015.“
Some 58 per cent of WASA's raw water supply comes from surface sources and some localised sources, the release said.
Some of the surface water treatment facilities in Trinidad adversely affected include Lluengo/Naranjo and Acono in Maracas, St. Joseph; and La Canoa, Susconosco and Grand Curacaye in Santa Cruz, the release said.
The Met Office's weather outlook for May 2015 was for below-normal rainfall, the release said.
“The Authority has been continually reviewing its Water Management Plan in light of this situation. This includes adjustments to existing water schedules, as well as a ramped up water trucking service to supplement the shortfall in supply, particularly in areas where there are no alternative sources.”