By FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

The Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) yesterday confirmed it has completed repairs to the ruptured main water line on Prince Charles Drive that left hundreds without water at the weekend.

While repairs were completed around 9.30 pm on Sunday, ending either no or low water pressure for the Corporation’s eastern New Providence customers, workers left a mountain of excavated tarmac piled in the middle of the re-opened four-lane highway. They had also neglected to re-pave the large hole in the road created by the repairs, resulting in traffic backlogs during the Tuesday morning rush hour.

A statement released by the Corporation on Sunday explained that, as a result of the repairs, a portion of Prince Charles Drive had to be be closed off that day so technicians could excavate the water mains and replace the leaking line.

“At approximately 1.45am today, the Corporation’s system control received alarms from its SCADA system, alongside public reports, indicating a major leak on Prince Charles Drive opposite Ashley’s Furniture. Our personnel promptly responded by securing the roadway and shutting down the water supply to eastern New Providence to prevent further flooding and damage to the roadway,” it explained.

“As a result, water supply to customers in eastern New Providence was interrupted. By 7am, our repair teams had excavated down to the water mains and confirmed a longitudinal split on the 24-inch main, necessitating the replacement of a section of the main.”

Speaking in the House of Assembly last week, Leon Lundy, minister of state in the Office of the Prime Minister, said the Water & Sewerage Corporation is currently undertaking a $175m capital works programme designed to improve water and sanitation services throughout The Bahamas. This was described as the largest infrastructure upgrade it has undertaken to date.

Mr Lundy also outlined some of the $5.25m water works for Eleuthera, including a 500,000 imperial gallon tank that has been installed at Water & Sewerage Corporation’s Bogue plant and a new tank to be commissioned in early summer that will increase the site’s overall capacity by more than 70 percent.

The minister also reported that extensive repairs were being undertaken to eliminate the leaks in the existing Spanish Wells storage tank, and work has begun on the installation of two new 250,000 imperial gallon tanks in Harbour Island to replace the current 200,000 imperial gallon tank that is “old and leaking substantially”.

He expects the first new tank to be completed by mid-summer, and the existing tank will be demolished and replaced by late 2024. Generators will also be installed in Hatchet Bay and at the Arawak transfer station to improve the reliability of water supply for Hatchet Bay and Gregory Town in the event of extended power failures.

Work is also underway to increase the capacity of the Bogue wellfield groundwater supplies, and to improve the electrical supply to the wellfield. A new standby generator was installed at the Bogue to ensure there is no interruption of water supply transfer from mainland Eleuthera to Harbour Island in the event of a power outage.

On Russell Island, Mr Lundy said an exercise was undertaken to bring potable water to over 60 homes and the second phase of the work will start in the coming months.