Rain delays work on stadium track

André Lowe, Senior Staff Reporter

Four consecutive days of rains in the Kingston area have caused further delays to the repair work being carried out on the track at the National Stadium, which now means the authorities are expecting the project to be completed on February 28 - four days off the original target.

Work was said to be progressing nicely at the site, with Major Desmon Brown, general manager of Independence Park Limited (IPL) - the state-run organisation that manages the day-to-day affairs of the complex that houses the National Stadium - advising that things were about 85 per cent complete, before the skies opened up.

Interestingly, things aren't exactly looking great for Brown and the contractors from Germany-based company BSW Regupol, who are responsible for the project, with weather forecasts showing a 30 per cent chance of rain for the next three days.

No work has been possible on the site since Monday morning because it is required that the base be totally dry before the installation of the synthetic track, due to the sensitive nature of the material used to lay the track.

Brown remains positive despite the slight setback and sought to assure that the project will be completed long before the May 12 Gibson Relays.

"The team was working every day of the week and had completed about 85 per cent of the work before the rains began," said Brown.

"It's not as bad as it could have been, we are still in a very comfortable position at this point and we have no doubt that we will be ready before the first meet is scheduled for the National Stadium," said Brown. "At this stage, barring no further setbacks, we are looking at finishing up on the 28th but, of course, we must all remember that we do not control the weather.

"Today (yesterday) started well, but then it started drizzling and the material that is used to lay the surface cannot be opened in these conditions or it will be spoiled," said Brown, who added that the team would have been marking the track yesterday if the conditions had allowed them to.

Bad weather in Europe had delayed the shipment of the required material and equipment to Jamaica for several weeks between December last year and January this year, resulting in the postponement of the popular Gibson Relays from its original February 26 date.