Our next story is about a woman who broke her ankle when she fell into a hole in the sidewalk.
Today Lovine Welch is walking on crutches after she cracked her ankle in two.
According to Welch, on Sunday night, she was walking on Mahogany Street -when she didn't notice that one of the sidewalk covers was missing. She stepped into the massive hole that was filled with water and broke her ankle.
Today she is putting the blame on the Belize City Council who she says should be more vigilant in the upkeep of pedestrian walkways.
And to make matters worse, she told us an employee of the Council contacted her today and wasn't showing any sympathy when he asked her to find her way on crutches to City Hall.
Here's Welch's story:..
Lovine Welch
"We were going to visit my mother because it was mother's day and so we decided to go visit her. When my husband and I were walking I saw the hole and I told him that I pray to God that no one falls into this hole."
"On our back I was the one that fell into the hole. I didn't know that I would have drop in that hole. I hurt my foot and my back; I sprain my ankle, broke and crack it."
"When I call the city hall they told me that I must go there. I told them that I am on crutches, I am not use to crutches, I am use to my two feet."
Monica Bodden
"Someone from city hall called you?"
Lovine Welch
"Yes ma'am Mr. Gonzalez and he told me to go there at 2pm. I told them that I am on crutches and I cannot reach there. I drop and knock my foot on the cement walkway, my foot was bleeding. My husband bought two bags of water from the shop and he washed it off and he catch a taxi because I couldn't walk."
Reporter
"I see your foot in a cast right now. What did the doctor diagnose you with? You crack you ankle in two places?"
Lovine Welch
"The ankle cracks that why they had to put in a cast."
Reporter
"In terms of the council, you received a call earlier from the council and what were the instructions? did they say that they would come visit you?"
Lovine Welch
"They told me to try to reach there and then they will take care of me. I am a nice person, but I get ignorant when I am being turned around. They must have thought that I am telling them a lie because they ask me where it happened and if anyone else was with me. I told them that my husband and my father was with me, it was my husband that took me out of the hole. People were around when I fell in there. I told them that I don't tell lies to get help."
Monica Bodden
"What kind of hole was this on the street?"
Lovine Welch
"It was on the sidewalk, people called it "manhole," it had water in there."
Reporter
"People have complained about the state that these streets are in and these holes. You are a victim of it. How do you feel and do you think that it's a urgent need that the council needs to start fixing the streets?"
Lovine Welch
"They should have done something before something happens. That is their job. They should not wait until something happen to people before they fix the situation. They should walk or drive around to see the conditions of the streets."
"When elections are near, every minute they come to your house. You don't have time to see them because every minute you see them. They come into your yard. That's why now that they are in; they should ride around the city streets to see where needs fixing before people get hurt."
When we tried to get the City Council's side of the story, we were told that they will not be commenting at this time.
It is not the first time we are covering a story on a city resident who has gotten injured on a broken sidewalk.
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