Nearly 200,000 residents in the Suva-Nausori corridor will face water disruptions from midnight tonight until Sunday due to maintenance work being conducted by the Water Authority of Fiji (WAF).
In light of the situation, the ministries of health and education are implementing measures to ensure that essential services are not adversely affected. Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro announced that officials from WAF would meet today to discuss water supply alternatives for schools that will be impacted by the outages.
“We will release a statement following the meeting to provide schools with coping strategies,” Mr. Radrodro stated. “Shutting down schools will be our last option.”
Likewise, Minister for Health Dr. Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu confirmed that plans are in place to prevent any disruption to medical services. “We are aware of the water disruptions this weekend,” he noted, explaining that arrangements have been made with medical centers and the CWM Hospital to ensure services will continue as usual, alleviating concerns for the public.
WAF has advised residents to store enough water for three days and assured that water carting services will be ready to meet any urgent demands.
The reason for the disruption, according to WAF’s chief operating officer Seru Soderberg, is to connect a new DN900mm gravity main from the Waitolu reservoir to the existing DN600mm Rising Main from the Waila water treatment plant, which supplies the Wainibuku reservoir. Mr. Soderberg explained that only one of the three pipelines supplying the Wainibuku reservoir will be offline, which will reduce the total water flow to 60 percent of its usual capacity.
He mentioned that the work will be conducted in a challenging environment with a high-water table, making it a complex task. “The 600mm pipeline will be shut down at midnight on Thursday to de-water it before work commences early Friday morning,” he explained.
Mr. Soderberg acknowledged the inconvenience caused by the disruption but emphasized the importance of this work to prevent future problems. “We apologize for any inconveniences and assure the public that we are working to complete the task as quickly as possible, weather allowing.”
Residents are encouraged to make plans ahead and keep informed through WAF’s media channels for any updates.