Angel Beach secures reliable water supply

A reliable freshwater supply has helped Angel Beach maintain its operations on Yasawa-i-Rara, even during pro­longed dry spells. The property, built in 2013 as a holiday home, has 11 rooms, a lobby and a swimming pool overlooking the sunset.

Yasawa-i-Rara is a boat ride of three and a half hours from Lau­toka, depending on the weather.

Co-owner Anwa Khan said the property relied on its own well after an earlier borehole failed to provide water.

Mr Khan said he identified a suit­able spot on a hill by observing patches of green grass despite the dry conditions.

"I walked around, and then I saw there was a little grass in the val­ley. I could feel it was a dry day, like it had been drying for months," he said.

"I said, let's dig here.

The team dug eight metres and kept finding fresh water.

"I said, okay, we'll stop here."

Mr Khan said the well continued to provide water during the dry sea­son, although the supply required careful management.

"Even in the dry season, you still get about 1.5 feet of water. We can control the water, and you can drink it straight from the tap. It's clean water," he said.

Water is pumped from the well into storage tanks positioned on the hill­side, allowing the property to manage its supply according to demand.

Mr Khan said the property had also assisted a nearby health centre when it ran short of water.

"We were very lucky. We never had an issue with water," he said.

He said the well needed time to re­fill during particularly dry periods before water could be pumped into the tanks again.

Mr Khan said the property had storage capacity of about 80,000 li­tres, with the water system cleaned and refilled to maintain its supply.

"We are blessed with water. We have water, now we have power," he said.

Mr Khan said Angel Beach was initially developed as a private holi­day home before its potential as a tourism property began to emerge.

He said the property had previ­ously hosted visitors associated with the television series Survivor.

The owners were now considering listing the property on Airbnb as they looked at future opportunities for the site.