Residents gathered at the Bog Walk roundabout on Tuesday afternoon to protest the pollution of the river. (Photo by Devon Fletcher)
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Ethel Scott and Elise Williams, two of the residents who protested in Bog Walk, St. Catherine on Tuesday
There are more tales of anguish and despair from fisherfolk who have been affected by the chemical spill in the Rio Cobre in St. Catherine.
Effluent from bauxite company Windalco's Ewarton plant polluted the river and caused a major fish kill on the weekend.
Ethel Scott, who says she relies solely on the river to earn an income, is worried about the future.
"Go down by the bridge down there and look on the corner and you'll see how much fish... are poisoned. On a Sunday, I'll [usually] eat a nice Sunday dinner and I'm not on any PATH programme or any pension, ah fishing I do as a living and it is all gone," the woman told Radio Jamaica News as she fought to hold back her emotions.
She was among persons who gathered at the Bog Walk roundabout on Tuesday afternoon to protest the pollution of the river.
Another member of the fishing community, Elise Williams, said she feels hopeless as she has been unable to feed her family.
"Mi bawl til me n'aave nuh voice cah mi hungry. Nuh fish nuh deh deh fi ketch. Weh we ago ketch?"
The chemical spill in the Rio Cobre continues to wreak havoc on marine life.
Miss Williams marvelled that when she cut one of the fish she caught from the river, it had no internal organs, just liquid.
The residents and fisherfolk of communities near the Rio Cobre say they are tired of the frequent contamination of the river.
They are urging regulatory bodies to take strong action against Windalco to prevent a recurrence.
Members of the public have been advised not to eat fish from the Rio Cobre.
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