WAPA customers suffer through more rolling blackouts

Rolling blackouts are still plaguing V.I. Water and Power Authority customers, and it’s unclear if the utility has purchased sufficient fuel to keep generators running through this week.

Generating unit 15 failed at the Randolph Harley Power Plant on Sunday, prompting yet another round of rolling blackouts that left thousands of customers without power for hours at a time. Low fuel was the cause of power failures the week before — and could be again, if WAPA can’t afford to restock its dwindling supply.

WAPA CEO Karl Knight told the Public Services Commission at a meeting Tuesday that the agency had finally received a delayed fuel shipment on Sept. 8, but it was only “about 18% of our capacity,” which would last maybe “a couple weeks, that’s about it.” Knight explained that, “we’re trying to make an additional purchase to come in on the 18th, we’re trying to schedule that this week.”