Days after it was revealed that a team of engineers were in the process of drilling a 500 meters well in the Valley of Desolation and in the direction of the country’s boiling lake, nervous residents took the airwaves voicing concern of a potential catastrophic event.

The residents' panic was not helped by the added revelation that due to the failure of a previously drilled well another had to be done to accommodate the reinjection of potentially toxic material taken off during the earlier exercise.

Conservationist Athie Martin has also weighed in on the debate telling the local media that in the absence of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), he feared that the lives of thousands of residents in the Roseau Valley could be in jeopardy.

Although no government official have commented on the growing calls of concern, residents’ fears seem to stem from the fact that toxic material from the wells may be mixed in with the country’s water supply.

Others also worry that when fresh water is re injected into the wells the resulting steam may not be contained within the wells and could adversely impact the surrounding environment. Still others fear the risk of an eruption linked to the deep drilling exercise.

In view of the tremendous uncertainty arising from the recent activity, residents have been hastily summoned to a meeting to discuss evacuation plans in the event of an accident or otherwise catastrophic event.

Many are now calling on government to completely shut down its exploratory phase and to make available to the general public the EIA for review.