3 days water cuts commences midnight tonight

Close to 200,000 residents liv­ing along the Suva-Nausori corridor will experience water disruptions from midnight tonight until Sunday due to planned maintenance works by the Water Authority of Fiji (WAF).

In response, the ministries of health and education are imple­menting strategies to ensure essen­tial services remain unaffected.

Minister for Education Aseri Radrodro said they would meet with WAF officials today to discuss water supply options for schools impacted by the disruptions.

“After the meeting, we will issue a statement and provide schools with coping mechanisms,” Mr Radrodro said.

“Closing schools will be our last resort.”

Similarly, Minister for Health Dr Ratu Atonio Lalabalavu confirmed plans were in place to prevent inter­ruptions to medical services.

“We are aware of the water disrup­tions this weekend,” he said.

“We have outlined a plan with medical centres and the CWM Hos­pital to maintain services as normal, so the public should not be concerned.”

WAF has advised residents to store sufficient water for three days and has assured that water carting services will be on stand­by to address any urgent needs.

Reason for disruption

WAF chief operating officer Seru Soderberg said the planned works were essential to connect the new DN900mm gravity main from the Waitolu reservoir to the existing DN600mm Rising Main from the Waila water treatment plant, which supplies the Wain­i buku reservoir.

“This means only one of the three pipelines to the Wainibuku reservoir will be offline, reducing the total water flow to 60 per cent of its usual capacity,” Mr Soder­berg said.

He added works would be car­ried out on challenging terrain with a high-water table, making it a complex operation.

“The 600mm pipeline will be shut down at midnight on Thurs­day to de-water it before works commence early Friday morn­ing,” he said.

Mr Soderberg acknowledged the inconvenience the disruption would cause but emphasised that the work is crucial to prevent fu­ture issues.

“We apologise for any incon­venience caused and assure the public that we’ve streamlined the process to complete the work as swiftly as possible, weather per­mitting.”

Residents are advised to plan accordingly and stay updated through WAF’s media channels for further developments.

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