Brava: Rain causes landslide and leaves Fajã d´Água community isolated again

Speaking to Inforpress, Sónia Baptista, a resident of the locality, said that everything happened in the early hours of the morning and the exact time was not known, but she stated that it was raining heavily with wind, lightning and thunder which, according to her, caused the fall.

According to the same source, it is time to find other solutions for the road that leads to the Fajã d 'Água area, as this is the third collapse since January, which leaves the community completely isolated.

Sónia Baptista called for a response as soon as possible from the competent authorities, guaranteeing that the school has already started and the children need the path to be able to attend classes normally.

When contacted, the president of Brava City Council, Francisco Tavares, acknowledged that the situation “is worrying”, but emphasizes that they will “take action” as soon as possible with heavy machinery to clear the access road to the town.

According to the mayor, the company Estradas de Cabo Verde is currently studying the opening of a new path starting from the road that connects Esparadinha/Fajã d'Água/Palhal, however it draws the Government's attention to the urgency of same.

“We are going to restore normality to the usual road that connects to the town, but soon after, work will begin on the new access road”, he appealed, highlighting that it will not be easy, as they will open a new path around of 4.5 kilometers in “virgin” terrain.

According to the mayor, the company Estradas de Cabo Verde has already carried out all the technical surveys and the proposal is already finalized and awaiting financing for execution.

Francisco Tavares concluded, guaranteeing that, at this moment, what they will do is re-clean the road that suffered the collapse and continue the work that was already underway, namely, the reconstruction of protective walls and then the paving.

For his part, the person responsible for the municipal sector of Civil Protection and Firefighters on Brava Island, António Lopes, considered that the situation is quite worrying during this rainy season, as it always brings losses to local and national authorities.

“This situation always brings a certain embarrassment to the community of Fajã d'Água, which is completely isolated when landslides occur, which is why we appeal to the Government to make a fundamental intervention in relation to this issue”, he requested.

The person responsible once again reinforced the appeal to the population regarding preventive measures for this rainy season in order to avoid any human or material disruptions.

The road has always been a source of complaints from residents, but also from visitors and drivers, who always called for major interventions, as rockfalls always occur on this road.