Pothole-ridden roads are a common thing in spring, but one section of road in Cape Breton’s Inverness County was in bad enough shape residents were told to expect delays in emergency response.
“It’s going to slow down services - not just the fire services, but EHS as well,” said Chief Justin Usher of the Valley Mills Volunteer Fire Department, referring to a section of Marble Mountain Road.
Much of the 29-kilometre road is paved, but the gravel section, which is prone to severe damage, passes in front of the Valley Mills fire station.
Usher said it can take as long as 15 minutes to cross the roughly three-and-a-half-kilometre stretch of road, causing delays when volunteer firefighters have to retrieve equipment from the fire station before responding to a call.
Usher noted the lack of pavement poses a different problem in the winter.
“The municipal and provincial government has recently invested $120,000 in a generator to make us a comfort center,” he said. “But unfortunately because of this small gravel section, it doesn’t see plowing service as quickly as it should.”
Area resident and Deputy Fire Chief Barry Madill’s wife travels the road each day to get to work. He says it’s hard on the couple’s vehicles and people who live in the area have been asking the provincial government to fix the road.
“Well, I personally think it’s ridiculous,” Madill said. “It’s terrible. To be the only section around the Bras d’Or that’s not paved, I don’t understand that.
Recently, the section of road has been graded and for the time being it is in better condition, but the fire chief wants a more permanent solution in the form of pavement.
“Safety would be the biggest concern,” Usher said. “When you can’t even get to the fire equipment in a timely manner to respond to a call, minutes and seconds matter at that point.”
CTV Atlantic contacted Nova Scotia’s Department of Public Works about the issue, but they weren’t able to provide any details by deadline.
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