Access restored for NDG resident after construction woes kept him housebound

Shannon Moran’s front entrance has been blocked by metal fencing and a six-foot deep trench ever since a city contractor started replacing old lead pipes on his street in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.

It has been a difficult three weeks for the 70-year-old man who is hearing impaired, blind in one eye and has severe mobility issues.

“I don’t go out — it’s really impossible,” Moran said on Tuesday morning, before the problem was fixed.

READ MORE: Hearing-impaired NDG man fighting for subsidy for his service dog

After complaining and struggling to access his home for three weeks, construction workers helped out after Global News intervened.

Moran has had to leave his cane and guide dog behind and take a leap of faith every time he left the house. He sustained injuries after falling two weeks ago, when he tried to use the stairs at the back of the building.

“I went to take the garbage out and it was dark, down I went and I had to have X-rays on my knee and hip because I couldn’t walk,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I went to take the garbage out and it was dark, down I went and I had to have X-rays on my knee and hip because I couldn't walk," he said.

Moran can’t call the city for help or even to file a complaint. He claims he reached out to workers on site for help on several occasions — with no results.

“I can’t call them obviously because I can’t hear on the phone and the only contact I have is these guys here,” Moran said while pointing to construction workers.

View image in full screen

When Global News spoke to the construction site’s foreman, he said he hadn’t heard about the complaints and promised to fix the accessibility issue.

Within a few hours, heavy machinery moved in to fill the trench and restore access to Moran’s front entrance.

“It’s really easy,” François Veilleux from Foraction said. “It takes maybe half an hour.”

READ MORE: Record number of Montreal road construction projects causes traffic headaches

Veilleux told Global News that they had built ramps for several other residents with mobility issues and could have done the same for Moran had they known sooner.

“Freedom,” Moran said after his entrance was cleared.

With more road construction slated to last until December, he just hopes that the next time an accessibility issue comes up, the city and construction workers respond and react more quickly.