Construction work on the Kaneshie First Light underground drainage system in Accra is expected to delay as engineers have pushed the completion date from March 30 to mid-April.
Officials had announced in March 1 the project, which seeks to improve the drainage system in the area to prevent the perennial flooding, was going to be completed in 30 days to avoid inconvenience to motorists
However, engineers told 3news.com Thursday that work on the 7 million-cedi World Bank funded project cannot be completed on the initial scheduled date due to delays in commencement. Actual construction work started last weekend.
The resident engineer, Gabriel Engmann, said work is now expected to be completed in the middle of April this year.
Meanwhile, work is progressing steadily on the emergency priority drainage intervention project to rescue commuters and residents in the area from perennial flooding.
The regular floods in the area have been occasioned by small underground drains connecting to larger ones under the Winneba highway.
Although many feared the construction project was going to worsen the already traffic prone area, well-managed road diversions have so far ensured a smooth flow of traffic, albeit slow paced, even during rush hours.
Mr Engmann said the project was initially in November 2018 postponed to allow for adequate preparation of access lanes, diversions and other factors.
“The existing challenge is that there is a small pipe, about point six of a meter; very, very small so it’s not able to accommodate all the water that builds up to flow into the underground drain. So, the idea is to create a bigger size pipe so that the water can move through at a faster pace, to avoid spill overs and flooding”.
He added: “we are trying to create a chamber around the existing underground drain, that would connect the drain we have constructed in front of Accra Academy to channel all the water from Bubiashie, Darkuman and others into the underground chamber”.
The new one will be two chambers with about four meter space.
By Johnnie Hughes|3news.com|Ghana