Breaking

The Virgin islands Water and Power Authority in its latest update said that over 17,000 of its customers have been restored with power, as the utility continues to move towards its goal of reenergizing 90 percent of the territory by Christmas.

Below, the latest power and potable water restoration update.

ELECTRIC SYSTEM

Crews continued restoration work across the territory Thursday with additional customers being energized. More than 17,000 customers have been restored to date.
On St. John, crews continued restoration work on Feeder 9E near Boatman’s Point while other crews planted poles from the point where Feeders 7E and 9E intersect toward the fire station. There is also ongoing work from Great Cruz Bay to Fish Bay.
On St. Croix, work on Feeder 8B continued with additional customers on Queen Street including the Credit Union restored, as well as customers in portions of the Hannah’s Rest community. Work in Hannah’s Rest is approximately 90% complete. On Feeder 3A, additional customers were restored between Golden Rock and the fitness center, as well as in Hermon Hill and Catherine’s Rest. Work in the Sion Hill area on Feeder 4A is approximately 60% complete, with some customers there and in Estate Rattan being restored, along with the Free Will Baptist School. Work in Estate Rattan will continue through the weekend. On Feeder 5A, the Sugar Mill Villas were restored as well as additional customers in Estates Ruby and Barren Spot. The entrance to the container port on Feeder 9A will be energized on Friday.
On St. Thomas, primary circuits on Feeder 8A are energized from the Harley power plant to Savan, facilitating the restoration of additional customers. The Department of Labor’s offices and surrounding businesses on lower Kronprindsens Gade were restored and the Palms Court Harborview Hotel is expected to be energized on Friday. Additional customers on Feeder 6A, near the Berry Fire Station in Estate Dorothea, were energized, while reconstruction work continued on Feeder 7A from the Four Corners intersection to the Solberg road. Work to redevelop the primary circuit on Feeder 10A, from near the Cancryn Junior High School to Gregorie East, continued, as well as work on Feeder 7D in the Coki Point area. On Feeder 10B, new poles were planted along the roadway to Sea View nursing home. Additional poles were planted on Magen’s Bay road near the Lovenlund housing development toward Peterborg. Crews will be planting poles near the entrance to the Bovoni landfill in preparation to restore service to the landfill scale and other administrative functions at the site. There is also ongoing reconstruction work at Plantation Manor and at the top Bunker Hill.
Through an agreement reached with the Department of Planning & Natural Resources, WAPA will restore electrical service to homes with temporary roofs (blue roofs) once a licensed electrician has certified, in writing, that the structure is safe to energize.
Customers and electricians are reminded that it is against the law to remove or otherwise destroy meter seals. If work needs to be done to repair a damaged meter base and/or weather head, customers must call the Emergency Call Center at 340-774-1424 on St. Thomas-St. John or 340-773-0150 on St. Croix. The call centers operate seven days a week, 9 am – 5 pm.
If your electric meter was removed by WAPA personnel to facilitate repairs to either a meter base and/or weather head, once repairs are completed and a licensed electrician certifies the work in writing, customers are required to contact the Customer Service office to ensure that the meter will be reinstalled and resealed prior to the restoration of electrical service. All fees usually associated with meter removal and reconnection have been waived. Customer service offices are operating Monday-Friday, 9 am – 4 pm at Sunny Isle on St. Croix and Port of Sale Mall on St. Thomas.
Reconstruction, restoration and hurricane debris removal crews are deployed across the islands. Motorists are asked to exercise caution when driving through the work areas and to heed the directions of flaggers, military personnel and VIPD officers who are assisting with traffic control.
WAPA urges residents to shut off standby generators when line crews are in your neighborhood restoring electrical service. A standby generator has the potential to back feed electricity to the grid which poses a severe safety risk to restoration crews.

POTABLE WATER SYSTEM

There are seven days (77%) of emergency water storage on St. John, eight days (60%) on St. Thomas, and four days (52%) on St. Croix.
WAPA urges clean-up contractors and homeowners in both districts to exercise caution when piling debris on and around potable water meters. There are a growing number of instances where water meters are being damaged by clean-up equipment grading debris and causing damage to the roadside water meters. The continued damage by heavy equipment poses difficulty in maintaining or restoring potable water service to customers.

OTHER INFORMATION

WAPA telephone contact: St. Thomas – St. John district, 340-774-3552; St. Croix district, 340-773-2250
Customer Service Offices are operating Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. at Sunny Isle on St. Croix and at Port of Sale Mall on St. Thomas.
The latest information on the restoration effort is available on the WAPA website, www.viwapa.vi and on Facebook: Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority.