the area of Public services has begun the fencing of at least three areas of the Santos ravine as it passes through the neighborhood of La Salud. Specifically, it is the point where a 16-year-old boy lost his life on April 29 when he fell to the bottom of the ravine after slipping from the top of the slope, behind the municipal nursery. As confirmed to DIARY OF NOTICES the councilor responsible for the area, Carlos Tarife, “we are undertaking the work, ordered in this case by the Road Safety area, to provide security at three different points in the area that is included in the Local Police report.”
After the death of the young man, a petition was started on Change.org, in which the closure of this area was precisely requested in which, it is assured on the platform, there have already been more accidents, “some of them having the same tragic final”. So far almost 3,000 people have supported this popular petition.
Tarife warned, however, that “we are talking about a ravine, which is not a place that tends to be fenced, which is true that it is dangerous, and when someone approaches it, they do so under their individual responsibility.” “In this case -he continued- it is true that we will undertake some work following instructions from the Local Police, but the advice to the public is to be careful if you walk near a ravine. What we do not intend from Santa Cruz, nor are we going to be able to undertake, is to fence the entire Santos ravine. We will carry out some actions that the Police have ordered us in that environment, but from there we appeal to the individual responsibility of each one”.
more accidents
In the Change.org petition it is pointed out that the tragic accident of April 29 is not the only one that has occurred in the area in recent years, and they point out that the caves on the hillside may be one of the attractions for that the youngest enter the channel. In 2020, a 13-year-old boy accidentally fell in the same area, having to be rescued by firefighters. The fall was from about 20 meters, and the minor had to be taken out on a stretcher through a system of ropes, uphill. That same year, a man also had to be rescued who, on this occasion, accidentally fell while walking along the edge of the ravine near the road, in this same area of La Salud.
The Road Safety area recommends the fencing of 3 zones
Public Services has proceeded to fence three points located in the area behind the old La Salud market and the municipal nursery, which is where accidents have repeatedly occurred, some fatal, such as the one that affected the 16-year-old. As some of the signatories of the petition on Change.org point out, it is an area where Carnival groups rehearse, there are sports fields and associations from different fields, so the presence of children and young people is permanent. This initiative is intended to end the danger that free access leaves in that part of the ravine.
