NEW ORLEANS — Residents in a Mid-City neighborhood are calling on the city to fix two huge sinkholes on their street. One person told WWL Louisiana they've had to barricade off the hole so motorists don't drive straight into it.
"You just have to maneuver around it," said Mandi Richardson, who lives nearby.
On Baudin Street, at the intersection of Carrolton Avenue in Mid-City and opposite Esperanza Academy, are two gaping holes just waiting to gobble up unsuspecting prey or a car.
Nathan Stephens, who works in the area, told WWL Louisiana that, "There's a school right there, and there's also Jesuit High School a block away, so there's a lot of young children and young people around."
Stephens says he noticed the holes on Monday. Days later, the holes have been cordoned off by those on the street to prevent anyone from driving into them or, worse, falling in.
"A lot of people walk to go pick up their children, and just two giant sinkholes is unsafe," Stephens said.
Councilman Joe Giarrusso feels residents' frustration, especially those who have to deal with road construction and sinkholes simultaneously.
The councilman said, "We've had so many issues where sinkhole has been there for a year, this pothole hasn't been addressed for years. We have a list that goes back at least sometimes three, four, five years, a really long period of time... it speaks to the larger message of, you need to have a system that is based on triage and aid and then addressing those in order."
Sewerage and Water Board said they learned about the sinkhole on Tuesday and said, "Our crews sent a flush truck out to perform a dye test to identify the root cause of the sinking. Our dye test results found dye getting into the 10” drainage system, which is currently managed by the City’s department of public works."
While the City's Department of Public Works said "This issue falls within the footprint of SWBNO's sewer line replacement work. It was completed as part of the Mid-City Basin Sewer Rehab #3 contract. We encourage you to reach out to SWBNO for more information," in a statement.
311 data shows people have been reporting potholes on the 4000 block of Baudin St. since 2012.
Mandi Richardson is beyond frustrated, she says she's had to move twice because of the city's decaying roads, saying, "It's a shame really, it's a beautiful city and the streets are just kind of a joke."
To make matters worse, the street is prone to flooding during heavy rain.
"Who's to say another one's not going to show up down the street? I think that's the main concern... just more showing up, and we don't know," Stephens said.
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