Homeowner fears broken guardrail creates safety issue, several requests submitted for repairs
UPDATE The City-Parish made repairs to the guardrail Monday morning. Melody Russell says she is happy to have her safety net back in place.
BATON ROUGE - A guardrail protecting a home was knocked down by a car last December. For months, it has been sitting in one woman's yard and she'd like for it to be put back where it belongs.
After several calls to the city, Melody Russell called 2 On Your Side.
"It's too heavy for me to move I can't do anything about it," said Russell.
The heavy-duty guardrail typically stands at the fork in College Drive headed toward Jefferson Highway. It's a spot where cars often whip through. Some, despite the flashing arrows and signage, miss the turn. The guardrail is meant to be Russell's safety net.
"It's a safety concern, of course, I mean, I don't want anyone in my living room," she said.
Since she has lived in her home on the College Drive island, Russell has experienced cars hitting the guardrail several times a year. This last time she was quick to make a report.
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"Within 15 minutes I called 311," she said.
Russell is not the only one who has called, a handful of her neighbors have chimed in and reported the broken guardrail.
"We're just trying to get it repaired, it's been sitting in that same spot since December 18," said Russell.
In the meantime, she's been mowing and weed-eating around the mangled metal and thick wooden posts. It's bent and leaning on her shrubbery. While it sits there, she prays another car doesn't miss the turn.