Post office dealing with Christmas rush

With the meaning of the word “mail” increasingly defined as that long list of unsolicited offers that find their way onto your computer, it seems that fewer and fewer Belizeans require the services of the post office. But as Patrick Jones discovered, the facts say otherwise…and until someone figures out how to send a black fruit cake by email our postal workers will still have a job.

Patrick Jones, Reporting
With the Christmas season in full swing, counters at post offices countrywide are busier than ever. But the mail service has stepped up its operations to meet the demand. Counter Supervisor at the main post office James Gabourel says so far things are going smoothly.

James Gabourel, Counter Supervisor
?Presently, we are indeed experiencing an inflow of customers into the post office. And what we have been doing starting this week is increasing the number of postal assistants on the counter. Normally when you would come in between twelve and one, we would have only one postal assistant dealing with the customers, and effective this week we have two persons working between twelve and one. So that is one area that we are looking at to facilitate our customers.?

But customers can also help themselves. Gabourel says nothing beats proper planning.

James Gabourel
?The bottom line is post early. Very often we wait until the last minute to do what we need to do. In this case, you still have the possibility of getting your mail early to the United States or to whichever destination. The mail normally takes about one week from point A to point B. So if you would come in, even today, your mail could still reach on time. So, the bottom line is to mail early. You still have time.?

The post office normally sends an average of five bags of airmail each day, but since the start of the Christmas season, that volume has jumped considerably to where postmen are now hauling in excess of ten bags of mails daily to the PGIA for export to international destinations. Gabourel says postal workers will be going the extra mile this Christmas to deliver as many incoming letters and packages as is humanly possible.

James Gabourel
?On Christmas day we do deliver yes. But that?s only for the express mail. The regular mail we work up to the twenty-fourth of December. Also, we are seriously considering opening on Saturday to facilitate the customers. And if this is done, we will certainly put an announcement on the media.?

Patrick Jones
?What will be the determining factor in whether or not you open this weekend??

James Gabourel
?We will be looking at the volume of mail that we would receive during the course of today and tomorrow. Once we get an unusually large volume of mail, as we normally do during this season, we will certainly be opening on Saturday.?

And while you?re standing in line waiting to send or receive your package, Supervisor of the Philatelic Bureau Emelia Cayetano invites you to check out a colourful array of stamps from Christmases past.

Emelia Cayetano, Supervisor, Philatelic Bureau
?This year we are not having any new Christmas issue. However we want to encourage the customers to reflect back on past Christmas issues that we?ve had from since 1969 and up. So in collaboration with the archives department, the Belize Postal Service has on display stamps dating back from late sixties up to the present, which is the Scarlet Macaw, 2003.?

Patrick Jones, for News 5.

The post office confirmed this afternoon that it will be open this Saturday from eight until one.