Andre Williams, STAR Writer

Residents of Grange Lane, St Catherine, are angry and vow to take matters into their own hands if the health authorities do not get rid of a foul stench in the community, reportedly caused by a chicken coop.

Residents say over time, they had to endure the foul odour, which according to them is generated from a fowl coop situated at the front of a yard, and operated by a senior citizen who lives in the community.

According to several residents, their pleas for the odour to be controlled, or the fowl coop to be removed, have fallen on deaf ears as the owner/operator of the farm keeps providing petty excuses and in some cases disregard their complaints.

Leon Lewis said, "Him have the farm a good while now but right now a dust mask mi haffi a sleep ina because the odour get stinker. If yuh think a lie come down here and smell for yourself and see it for yourself ."

Lewis journeyed to THE STAR to make his complaint in the hope of having the problem rectified.

THE STAR was told among the excuses given to the affected residents by the owner of the farm was lack of sawdust and sand.

Lewis said, "Him nuh interested enuh because if him did want him could a get dem ting deh ... den how him a buy more chicken and more feeding?"

Lewis said, "Mi go dung a di St Jago Health Authority but dem tek too long and tru mi a nuh nobody wid name ... mi nuh name Usain Bolt or none of dem big man deh, tru mi a small fry but if a me did a cause the problem, mi get move up long time ..."

Another resident told THE STAR, "It has become worse! A dead we a dead ... worse like how the breeze all a blow ... We a beg unuh please, please, please come do something about it."

When THE STAR visited the community recently, we were directed to the yard where the coop was located, there we saw the farm owner busy slaughtering some chickens.

The odour which the residents complain about was not readily picked up but the longer we stood there, as the breeze blew, it became clear what the residents had to contend with.

When THE STAR spoke with the proprietor of the fowl coop he said, "Any scent weh dem a talk bout a nuh my coop ... is the drainage across the road that dem clean and find some dead dogs and mi burn dem ... my ting nah trouble nobody ... when dem run weh leave the place a me alone did deh here a do my thing ... weh dem come back for a come cause trouble."

He continued, "Look pan me coop... you a smell nothing? ... di lady from the health department come last week and look on it and all she say is that me fi keep it clean and use up mi sawdust fi keep down the odour ..."

Before THE STAR exited the community, we spoke to another community member about the issue.

He said, "Well di people dem always a complain bout it and me smell it sometimes but me feel say if him clean di place regular it wouldn't have to move ... dem ting deh yuh have fi spend time and clean enuh."

When our news team contacted the St Catherine Health Department, we were told that an inspector went to the location, however, the outcome was not disclosed, as that inspector could not be located.