New Jobs Available To Manage Traffic Flow; 75 Percent Of Cellphone Towers Back Up

ST. CROIX — Governor Kenneth Mapp during his Monday hurricane recovery press briefing at Government House announced that 50 jobs were available for flagmen to assist in managing traffic as the territory marches forth with power restoration efforts.

Mr. Mapp said those interested in the positions, which will pay $10.25 per hour, can report to the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (WAPA) offices at Al Cohen’s Mall in Havensight on St. Thomas or the WAPA Human Resources Division in Sunny Isle on St. Croix. They may also call 774-3552 ext. 2029 on St. Thomas and 773-2250 ext. 4042 on St. Croix for more information.

As the flagmen assume their new posts, WAPA will concentrate on getting street lights working and removing old wires, transformers and other electricity-related debris from the roadways.

Additionally, new school crossing guards will be hired by the Virgin Islands Police Department, the governor reported. “We have depleted our school crossing guard force tremendously and we need to beef that up.”

Also at the briefing, William Vogel, federal coordinating officer of the Federal Emergency Management Authority (FEMA) Region II, announced that 77 generators have been deinstalled, a sign of the progress being made across the Virgin Islands. He also shared that 78 percent of cellular sites are now operational across the territory.

The Coast Guard has pulled close to 500 vessels out of the territory’s harbors, and a request will be made of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to remove them from territory. “Our landfills are already bursting at the seams. We don’t have any place to store this kind of debris,” Mr. Mapp warned.

The territory’s leader thanked the media for their support in covering the press briefings over the past three months. He also expressed his appreciation to federal partners for their assistance in supporting the briefings, which have helped to keep Virgin Islanders at home and abroad abreast of the day by day rehabilitation.