PHILIPSBURG, Sint Maarten — The Police Department is sending a warning to all operators/owners of heavy equipment stating that, in the aftermath of hurricane Irma and Maria a lot of heavy equipment was used in the cleanup of the island.
Heavy equipment refers to heavy-duty vehicles, specially designed for executing construction tasks, most frequently ones involving earthwork operations.
They are also known as heavy machines, heavy trucks, construction engineering equipment, heavy vehicles, or heavy hydraulics. Heavy equipment operators/owners have been making use of the public roads 24 hours a day under this extra ordinary condition.
It has been five months since the passing of the hurricane Irma and Maria, and even though the debris and garbage collection on the island is still ongoing, the police department will go back to enforcing the laws.
For that reason as of Monday February 19th 2018, the police department has instructed its officers to start controlling and removing heavy equipment which is using the public roads during the hours they are not allowed to.
The hours known as the “peak hours”, during which heavy equipment is not allowed to use the public roads runs daily, not including holidays and weekends, from 06.30 a.m. to 08.30 a.m. and from 12.00 p.m. to 02.30 p.m. These measures are in accordance with article 60-A of the Traffic Ordinance of the Windward Island. (Artikel 60-A Wegenverkeersverordening Bovenwindse Eilanden).
All heavy equipment operators/owners are hereby urged to take good note of this information and take all necessary precautions to avoid any unnecessary inconvenience.
