ST. LANDRY PARISH — OPELOUSAS, La. (KATC) — Residents living along Rue Joubert Road say dangerous conditions have made the roadway nearly impassable for years, and now they believe it’s putting lives at risk.
Neighbors say the road is riddled with deep potholes, uneven terrain and frequent flooding, making it difficult for everyday traffic to pass. Some say essential services, including garbage trucks, mail carriers and even school buses, refuse to travel down parts of the road.
“The trash man, the mailman, the school bus…” Clinton Milton, a resident said, describing the lack of access.
Residents say the issue has persisted for more than a decade, with little progress toward repairs despite repeated complaints.
KATC's Paris Flannigan spoke to residents about the issue back in October.
“You see this road—it’s Joubert’s Lake,” Milton said. “That’s what I call it.”
Tuesday afternoon when Dora Mayne said an ambulance was unable to reach her boyfriend’s home after she called 911 when he became seriously ill.
“I called 911—Manuel Wheeler was very ill—and they wouldn’t come down the road because of the water on the road,” Mayne said.
Mayne said emergency responders attempted to reach the home twice but were unsuccessful.
Surveillance video obtained by KATC from a nearby residence appears to show an ambulance stopping short of the property. About an hour later, a first responder can be seen walking in the direction of the home.
After the unsuccessful attempts, Mayne said she arranged for her niece to help transport her boyfriend to the hospital.
“ I asked my niece to help me load him up and take him to the hospital,” she said.
KATC reached out to Med Express, the responding agency, but has not yet received a response.
Parish President Jessie Bellard said he is aware of the conditions on Rue Joubert Road and is working toward a potential solution. Bellard said an ordinance has been introduced that could allow the parish to repair private roads under certain conditions, but it's currrently delayed.
“It was tabled in December of last year, and we’re waiting on the Attorney General’s opinion to make sure we can legally move forward,” Bellard said.
The proposed ordinance would allow the parish to take over maintenance of private roads, but only if there are at least 10 homes within a subdivision.
“We feel we can take in roads, especially in circumstances like this,” Bellard said.
Bellard warned that similar situations have had tragic outcomes in the past.
“This has happened before—on another road just north of Opelousas—where someone couldn’t get help, and that person died,” he said.
Residents say they hope action is taken soon before another emergency leads to a worse outcome.
