FREDERIKSTED — The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority admitted to what people on the west end of St. Croix have already painfully felt for many days — they have very little potable water — if any at all.
“Potable water customers from mid-island to the western end of St. Croix will continue to experience low pressure or no water service today as storage levels at the Kingshill tank remain just over three feet,” WAPA said. “A minimum six to seven feet is required for WAPA to meet demand and deliver normal potable water service.”
For the past “several days,” WAPA has been unable to grow the storage capacity at the tank despite the outflow of two pump stations, Concordia and Contentment, feeding into the Kingshill storage facility.
“We are continuing to pump water into the tank, however, with the increased demand for service, due to the drier weather conditions, we have been unable to increase capacity,” WAPA Chief Operating Officer Noel Hodge said. “We are beginning today with three feet, six inches of water.”
Problems with potable water service on St. Croix began overnight Friday when an electrical malfunction tripped the Concordia pump station resulting in a diminishing of the tank’s capacity.
“Since that time, we have been unable to recover capacity,” Hodge said.
Hodge said Water Distribution crews are continuing to inspect the system daily to determine whether the challenges involving the water levels at Kingshill are being compounded by any loss of water in the distribution system. “Unfortunately, until we can increase the level of storage at the Kingshill tank, we cannot restore normal potable water service to the currently affected customers.
“We will continue to monitor this situation and provide regular updates to the public,” he said.