WMA repairing broken line to stop sewage overflow in C’sted; DOH advises public of health hazards

ST. CROIX — A broken, 20-inch force main line that required the LBJ Pump Station to be taken offline two days ago and subsequently caused sewage to overflow into the harbor from manholes in downtown Christiansted is being repaired by a Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority contractor who expects to complete the job this evening.

“Once you have a leak in the force main, you have to shut down the pump,” Ron Phillips, WMA senior engineer project manager, said. “So once a pump is shut down, you’re not transferring any water from the LBJ Pump Station.” When the 30-foot section of old, ductile iron pipe gets replaced with PVC and the pump station comes back online, wastewater will once again get transferred to the Figtree Pump Station near the oil refinery to be pumped to the treatment plant before it goes out to sea, Phillips said.

“Right now, we’re in the process of actually doing emergency repair at the force main at the LBJ Pump Station,” Phillips said. “When that happens, then we can’t transfer the wastewater. And so, what you’re seeing right now, the lowest part in Christiansted, which is located at the Angry Nate’s intersection, that’s where the wastewater is going to be coming out through the manhole. As soon as that force main is fixed, then the station will be brought back online.”