Schools in the Central Division will remain open despite a scheduled water disruption due to maintenance work by the Water Authority of Fiji. The Ministry of Education has taken proactive measures to ensure that schools are prepared for the situation.
As part of the Global Handwashing Celebration, the Assets and Infrastructure Services (AIS) has been inspecting water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities along the Lami to Nausori corridor throughout the week. This includes evaluating the capacity of water tanks at schools to guarantee an adequate water supply for students. The Ministry has assured that water tanks are filled and additional resources are available. Parents can send their children to school with confidence, knowing there are measures in place to facilitate uninterrupted teaching and learning.
Seru Soderberg, the chief operating officer of WAF, explained that the maintenance plan involves connecting a 900-meter pipeline from the Viria water treatment plant to one of the three pipes at the Waila water treatment plant that leads to the Wanibuku Reservoir. Only one of the three pipelines supplying the Wanibuku reservoirs will be taken offline to accommodate this work.
WAF has communicated planned maintenance since September 20, although it faced two delays prior to a public advisory issued on September 25, just six days before the scheduled work. The maintenance is set to begin at midnight on Thursday and will continue until Sunday.