Member of Parliament for Christ Church South, Ralph Thorne.
Safety barriers will soon be erected to protect fisherfolk and vendors
plying their trade at the Berinda Cox Fish Market in Oistins.
Member of Parliament for Christ Church South, Ralph Thorne, gave the
assurance authorities will be moving to better safeguard this group,
following the tragic circumstances which led to the death of
74-year-old fish vendor Rita “Sissy” Hunte of Upper Carter’s Gap,
Christ Church on June 24.
In a freak accident, a vehicle jumped the sidewalk, striking and
injuring fish vendor Dorothy Hall before pinning Hunte onto a pole in
front of the number three stall where she worked for decades. She
passed away en route to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
The incident left many shaken and upset fisherfolk demanding better
safeguards from the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and the Blue Economy,
which holds responsibility for the fish markets.
Speaking to the media yesterday, Thorne stated, “I have had
discussions with the Ministry of Transport and Works and with
(Minister of Maritime Affairs and the Blue Economy) Kirk Humphrey and
we are hoping that in a very short time the barriers will be erected.”
However, he insisted that patrons would be able to do their shopping as before.
“In a sense there will be no barrier between the people of this market
and the people who shop here,” he said.
Thorne made the comments yesterday as Oistins fisherfolk donated a
significant number of fish packages to be distributed to the needy
within the constituency, on behalf of the ‘mother of the market’
Hunte, who would have celebrated her birthday on Wednesday.
“We will celebrate her birthday and today marks the beginning of the
celebration of Sissy Hunte’s birthday and we are using this event to
give a gift on behalf of Sissy Hunte back to the community of Christ
Church,” he expressed.