$993M airstrip construction

AS the government accelerates hinterland infrastructure and connectivity, some 50 people from the village of Karasabai in Region Nine will be employed to upgrade the current earthen airstrip into a concrete airfield.

This project will be built at a cost of $993 million, transforming it into eight inches of thick, rigid paved concrete, spanning a length of 3,000ft by 50ft, with a strength of 5,000 pounds per square inch (PSI).

About 50 navigational lights will be installed along the strip, allowing planes to land and take off at night in the event of an emergency.

Minister of Public Works, Bishop Juan Edghill, and a technical team from the ministry, including Head of the Special Projects Unit (SPU) Colin Gittens, visited the community on Wednesday to discuss the project with residents.

Construction is scheduled to begin on January 19 with an estimated duration of 75 days, to be executed by the SPU using a community participation model.

Fifty skilled and unskilled persons will participate in this transformative project.