Several parts of South Trinidad continue to be without pipe-borne water even though the nation’s dams and reservoirs are filled to capacity.
Worse-hit areas were Cocal, Mafeking and Ecclesville in Mayaro which have not received water for over six weeks.
Residents said yesterday they have been forced to purchase water for $500 per tank.
Councillor for Ecclesville Renelle Kissoon said she was overwhelmed by the water requests. She said all of the affected villagers were WASA customers and she has been trying to assist as best as she could.
At Saudia Avenue, St Croix in Barrackpore, resident Timothy Narine said his community has not received water since August 13.
“I am calling on WASA to provide water. We have received water about five times this year. I’ve made multiple complaints to WASA, complaints as well as the Regulated Industries Commission (RIC). They saying they will investigate but no one can solve the problem. We are unable to do the basic duties of washing and sanitising and this is affecting us very badly,” Narine said.
Contacted for comment Mayaro MP Rushton Paray said poor scheduling and poor infrastructure are the key culprits to the water shortages.
“Several hotels and small businesses are being saddled with additional cost to purchase water,” Paray said. He said an aggressive Well Rehabilitation and Maintenence on water wells in the Mayaro area will alleviate shortages.
He also said a new 14” line should be installed to take water from Navet Dam to Tableland.
“This will make all the water from Navet Dam to San Pedro available to the Mayaro Constituency 24/7. This line is currently shared on a 9-day cycle,” Paray said.
He also called for the provision of an additional pump and upgrade to the San Pedro Booster Station as well as installation of necessary trunk lines at the Guayaguayare Water Facility to bring over one million gallons of water to Services Guayaguayare and the Industrial Port Facility.
A list of people who are affected by the water shortages was forwarded to WASA’s corporate communications manager Daniel Plenty who promised to look into the matter.
Plenty said water distribution was impacted in August by a range of issues including major leaks due to landslips, mechanical problems at facilities and adverse weather conditions which affected some facilities.
These issues, he said, were outlined in a press conference held by the Authority in late August.