The EDITOR, Sir:

The passage of Hurricane Gustav severely damaged the Bog Walk gorge. Water damage to this essential road from rainfall is predictable. The question that must be answered is: How long do we intend to accept the repeated damage and disruption of social and commercial links to the north coast by rain that will fall and must fall? The options to pursue are as follows:

Allow things to remain as they are and be prepared to accept the dislocation along with the heavy restoration bills.

Develop the Barry Road as a suitable alternative route.

Make a new road parallel to the railway line and tackle the tunnelling or circumvention of the hill near to the Bog Walk railway station.

If geological surveys confirm that the walls of the riverbed are as rocky as they are above, sink the riverbed, say, 10 metres below the existing level. The material excavated from the river could be used to raise the level of the road from Kent village to the Flat Bridge.

After the foregoing, should the Flat Bridge prove to be too low to facilitate traffic when it rains, then drive the appropriate piles at both sides of the river to accommodate a bridge at a height, which our records would indicate as a sensible height above the stream.

The legendary bridge could be removed to prevent it from obstructing floating debris that might be coming from upstream.

Should it be decided to sink the riverbed, the concept of utilising the whole river area for water storage and hydro-electric generation must be evaluated. Nothing said herein is cheap, but to do nothing is proving to be very expensive indeed.

So, once again, I join the chorus of those who are asking that something be done about the Bog Walk gorge. In the context of the predictable repetitive damage, the restoration of the road surface while doing nothing to control the river must be regarded as doing nothing.

I am, etc.,

LUCIUS C. WHITE

1 Tankerville Avenue

Kingston 6