Inalåhan Mayor pushes for a much needed $1.5 million boat ramp near the surfside during a Community Hearing.
Many lives have been lost as a result of delayed response to emergency situations.
The 37th Guam Legislature’s Committee on Education, Public Safety and the Arts heard the concerns of southern village mayors and the community. Democrat Sen. Chris Barnett is the chairperson of the Legislative Committee on Education, Public Safety and the Arts.
Anthony Chargualaf, the mayor of Inalahan, pushed for the construction of a boat ramp in the southern east side of the island.
The Surfside, also known as Talo’fo’fo’ Bay, does not have a point of access for emergency response boats in the event of an emergency.
According to Chargualaf, the nearest point of entry for rescue boats to the Surfside is in the village of Malesso.
Because of this, in instances where there are distressed boats or swimmers in the area, it’s harder to respond to the emergency in time.
“I’ve witnessed this over the years, the course I’ve been a resident of Inalahan, that we have lost many lives as a direct result of not necessarily slow response, but definitely delayed response as a result of having no entry into the water on the eastern shoreline,” said Chargualaf. “There are zero entry points to address distressed boaters or swimmers. And that’s why i’m really pushing for this boat ramp.”
He said the Guam Economic Development Authority submitted a design for the ramp to the Department of Public Works. The initial cost for said design would be around $1.5 million.
Chargualaf added that the potential for incidents to happen in the area is very high because of how frequented it is. Having to travel all the way from the nearest point of entry during an emergency is a waste of time.
“If we build for example a police precinct up in the village of Talo’fo’fo, having to pass surfside, go all the way down to Malesso to enter, only to work its way back up to surf side,” he said.
Chargualaf claimed the construction of the boat ramp would make it possible to timely respond to emergencies on that side of the island.
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