Breaking

The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority said in its latest power and potable water restoration update that work to restore power to the USVI was hampered on Monday by inclement weather and saturated grounds. The stoppage was a result of a weather system that affected the territory and brought disorganized showers on Sunday, with its remnants lingering through Monday.

Below, find the latest updates:

On St. Thomas, crews worked on reconstructing the primary lines on Feeder 7A toward Patriot Manor while poles were planted in another section of the feeder near Altona. Work also continued on the redevelopment of a transmission feeder that will bring electrical service to the WAPA East End substation, and subsequently to customers on St. John as well as the Red Hook and Nazareth areas of St. Thomas.
On St. John, additional poles were planted from Cruz Bay to Estate Pastory, and work was done on a section of Feeder 9E. Crews from one of the off-island contractors will be dedicated to the restoration of St. John.
On St. Croix, line crews worked Monday on circuits leading from Mill Harbor to Five Corners and on a portion of Feeder 8B leading to Frederiksted. Clean up crews worked in Sunny Isle and on the campus of Central High School.
Over the weekend, 260 linemen arrived in the territory to assist in WAPA’s restoration of electrical service. The linemen are equally divided between both island districts and are already working alongside WAPA Line Department personnel and on-island contractors. 250 additional linemen are expected in the Virgin Islands on October 27, bringing the total number of off-island personnel to more than 500.
The Authority has contracted with debris removal crews in each district to clean up fallen lines, poles, transformers and other utility-owned hurricane debris. Efforts continue to identify debris sites on all islands.

Potable Water System

There are four days of emergency water storage on St. John; seven days on St. Thomas and three days on St. Croix.
On St. John, repairs are pending at the Cruz Bay pump station. Until these repairs are completed, the town of Cruz Bay is being provided potable water service from St. Thomas.
On St. Croix, both the Concordia and Contentment pump stations are back in service. Water pressure will increase over the next few days in Frederiksted and other west-end communities.
On St. Thomas, electrical service was restored to the Contant pump station. Potable water service is now available in Contant and the surrounding areas including the Contant Knolls housing community. All potable water pump stations on St. Thomas are now online and functioning normally.

Other Information

Emergency Call Centers operate 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., seven days a week. St. Thomas – St. John district, 340-774-1424; St. Croix district, 340-773-0150
WAPA telephone contact: St. Thomas – St. John district, 340-774-3552; St. Croix district, 340-773-2250
Customer Service Offices operate Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at Sunny Isle on St. Croix and at Port of Sale Mall on St. Thomas

Feature Image: A broken WAPA utility pole hangs over a road on St. Croix. (Credit: Irene Ali Photography)