Flooding causes WAPA power failures on St. Croix

Flooded underground power lines have been causing problems for V.I. Water and Power Authority customers on St. Croix.

WAPA confirmed Saturday that days of heavy rain have drenched roads and flooded a manhole in the Strand Street area, causing power failures for customers on Feeder 1A. WAPA employees subsequently discovered “another flooded manhole near First Bank/Credit Union,” according to a statement posted on WAPA’s Facebook page on Saturday night. “The water was pumped out with the assistance of the water department and the line crew opened an underground switch to isolate the area until a contractor can do the necessary repair work. As a result, consumers on Hill Street and part of King Street will remain without power pending completion of repairs.”

On Sunday night, WAPA announced that 5,211 customers were without power on Feeder 8B, and crews had been dispatched to determine the cause of the outage. WAPA did not issue any updates or tell the public what caused the failure. And Monday morning, WAPA announced that a portion of Feeder 1A was once again without power “due to underground repairs needed,” because of flooding. “The Line Department and WAPA contractor are actively working on repairs as weather permits. Customers impacted are on King Street, Company Street, Queen Street, and Hill Street. Thank you for your patience,” according to the announcement.