In the last issue of the Adair County Community Voice, we ran an article in which we attempted to get in contact with the United States Postal Service and receive answers regarding the delays many have been reporting on social media. If you have read that article, you may be aware the response received was less than reassuring.
Susan Wright, the sole communications director for the USPS among Kentucky, West Virginia, and Indiana, replied to an inquiry emailed to her by the Voice with the following:
“Our carriers are working each day and attempting to access mailboxes when it is safe to do so. We continue to ask customers to create a clear path to their mailboxes. For mailboxes located on the house, please clear a path on the sidewalk and steps leading to the mailbox. For curbside mailboxes, please clear a path to approach and exit the mailbox; generally, a car length approach and another car length to exit.”
The message then concluded with contact information to submit questions regarding delivery.
A potential problem with Wright’s response, beyond not addressing the core concern, is that it appears to lay blame (however subtly) on individual post carriers who have nothing to do with the actual sorting of mail in the distribution center, or even those who are awaiting their mail.
Around the time this article was published, the USPS has released a statement on Louisville’s delays.
“We are aware of recent service delays in the Louisville area and want to provide an update on the situation.
“Back-to-back severe weather events have significantly impacted our operations both locally in Kentucky and across our network. These weather-related challenges, coupled with an increase in employee availability issues following the storms, have contributed to temporary mail and package delivery delays in the region.
“Senior leaders are actively working with local teams to address the situation and restore the level of service our customers are accustomed to. We are committed to resuming normal operations as quickly and safely as possible.”
These weather challenges were corroborated by a source at the post office for the Adair County Community Voice. Staffing shortages and inclement weather were, of course, not mentioned in the statement from Wright.
Regardless of the cause, there are still many who have reported mail delays significantly impacting when bills or other important packages arrive. Some of these packages were allegedly stagnant even prior to winter storms. In an article for WHAS11 ABC, Contessa Williams went to the Louisville Distribution Center to pick up her mail personally after her mother missed bill payments due to delays. Williams told WHAS11 that the mail was delayed before the inches of snow Louisville got earlier this month.
Images have also surfaced online of boxes and mail reportedly stacked up in the distribution center. A WDRB article includes videos from employees showing the facility in disarray with piles of packages yet to be sent. An anonymous employee showed the interior of the facility to WDRB via photo and video after the inclement weather.
One employer told the news outlet, “It’s so messed up in here. It’s unreal.”
In the same article, Wright also told WDRB that any customers waiting for their packages should contact the USPS through their website or social media outlets.
As more attention began to be paid toward the ongoing issue with the distribution center, United States Congressman for Kentucky’s third district, Morgan McGarvey, wrote a letter to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy expressing his concerns regarding the significant delays his constituents are seeing.
“My office has recently received an alarming number of messages from consituents who are not receiving bills, medication, packages, and other important and timely mail. In many cases, constituents have reported checking their delivery status to find their package is stuck at the (Louisville) USPS facility for days and even weeks on end. USPS must act quickly to address issues at the Gardiner Lane facility and return to on-time delivery,” the letter stated. Rep. McGarvey, who is from Louisville, went on to add, “Louisvillians have read reports of broken equipment, staffing shortages, and severe mismanagement of resources, but USPS continues to report that the cause of this issue is recent inclement weather, despite employees alleging these issues started far before the winter storms. While I acknowledge that severe weather poses challenges to delivery and staffing, it is an unacceptable burden on USPS employees to work with broken equipment and under mismanagement.”
As of last week, mail has begun to trickle back into Adair County and other areas. With significant budget cuts to the USPS since 2020 and the facility’s hope to reduce work hours this year, slower mail delivery times may become common.
By Kenley Godby
kenley@adairvoice.com
