BRIEFS. public safety

Arraiján residents told to abandon homes

Officials at the country’s civil protection agency, SINAPROC, recommended that four families affected by landslides in the Nuevo Chorrillo neighborhood of Arraiján abandon their homes in the event that mud and other debris continues to settle following last month’s heavy rains.

Resident Herlinda Gómez rejected the agency’s recommendations, indicating that a more suitable solution would be to have the Ministry of Public Works remove the mud that has accumulated in and around their residences. She added that the neighborhood continues to suffer from floodwaters coming from the saturated soil.

Gómez and many of her neighbors have lived in Nuevo Chorrillo for 20 years and are reluctant to leave their homes without word from the government on relocation.

Residents of the area said they have been demanding that the government address the geological conditions since February of last year when the hill first showed signs of collapsing. Many claimed to have sent letters to the Municipality of Arraiján.