Bandra West residents have slammed the methods used by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to fix a sunken section of St John the Baptist Road over two months ago after a metal lid placed on top of the depression by the civic body got dislodged on Thursday, posing a threat to commuters and pedestrians. Residents first noticed that a portion of the road above an underground water pipe had sunk on July 14. Acting promptly, they placed markers and tree branches over the hole and contacted the BMC’s H West ward office. The latter proceeded to ‘fix’ the issue overnight, but residents allege that the work was done hastily.

“At first glance, we knew that the fix wouldn’t hold up for long, especially with the rainfall that was expected. Now what we had expected has come true,” said Floyd Gracias, an advocate and Bandra resident. The metal lid, which has hinges along the uneven border, was completely uprooted yesterday. A passerby, noticing this, put it back in place. But it was still protruding vertically on one side, creating a gap in the surface of the road. Residents have placed a wooden stick through a hole in the lid to alert motorists and avoid accidents.