This afternoon my wife and I left Orient to pick up a few things in the French Quarter. We are waiting for friends to arrive later today. We had heard that there was a strike in Sandy Ground because of vaccine mandates. We pulled onto the N7 to the road from Orient. As soon as we got to the top of the hill we saw a roadblock. Thinking it was the Gendarmes stopping traffic because of the strike we started to turn around but then saw cars being let through. We drove toward the roadblock and discovered too late that the roadblock was being manned by masked kids demanding money.
I had $2 on the console and they took that. We drove around the burnt out debris and followed another car past St. Joseph’s only to run into another road block by the gas station.
I turned the car around and headed back toward Orient only to be stopped again by 3 masked locals demanding more money. I offered them $2 that I had in my pocket and they refused. Demanding more money and refusing to let me pass I had to give them $20.
We’re still waiting for our friends to arrive and going to have to think long and hard about returning here.