MARINGOUIN, LA (WAFB) -
An elderly
woman in Maringouin is packing up 53 years of her life. She is one of several
people forced out of their homes after Union Pacific announced plans to expand
its rails from Livonia to Addis.
Maggie
Smith has lived in the same home for over half a century. Union Pacific
gave her and her neighbors the news in March. She was the last person on her
block to be "bought out" by the rail company.
The trains
can be heard passing by almost every 15 minutes. Union Pacific has made its
trek through the heart of Maringouin for hundreds of years. It has become
a way of life for the people who live in the small town. Smith has watched and
listened from her front porch for over 50 years.
"I
raised 11 children here," Smith said.
Smith joked
she was always the boss around the house. She is packing all of her memories
into cardboard boxes and moving on. Her neighbors, who have become more like
family, have already moved.
"It's
sad. It wasn't joyful for me," she added.
The whole
ordeal was a big convenience for Smith. But, she is smiling now. The rail
company paid her enough to settle in a bigger brick home less than a mile away.
"Oh, I
think it's lovely," she said.
Smith has even
managed to take her original wood cabinets from her old home and install them
into what will become her new home office, an amenity she did not have before.
However, Mayor John Overton still has some safety concerns. He said the town's
utility lines run right under the rails. He is worried a train derailment could
put thousands of lives in danger.
"Our
sewer line is near the railroad tracks," Overton explained. "If they
break, we have to fix it. Vibrations, shock waves, our water line is under the
railroad tracks."
As for
Smith, she said she is going to miss the sound of progress passing by her
porch. But, she added she is ready to be the boss of her own life again.
Town
lawyers are working out a deal with Union Pacific to make sure the town's
utilities are not impacted during or after the expansion. Homeowners were asked
to be moved out of their houses by July 15, 2012.
A few
homeowners are holding yard sale on Saturday, July 7, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. in
the 10100 block of Railroad Drive in Maringouin.
Contact Pam
Anderson at 715-6687 or Darlene Quincy at 235-6895 for more information.
Copyright
2012 WAFB. All rights reserved.
Maggie Smith
Smith will move into a house less than a mile away from her old home.
