The Water Authority has limited the amount of trucked water for customers in Cayman Brac because of what it calls a “period of extraordinary demand”.
It said that due to a large increase in requests for water over the past two to three months, it will only be delivering 2,000 gallons in order to manage the supply.
“This limitation will allow the authority to ensure that all trucked water customers are able to be provided with water, albeit less than their normal order amount,” the authority said.
“It also allows better management of the storage levels during this period of extraordinary demand, should there be any events of downtime at the plant.”
In a press release on Thursday, 13 April, it added that a short-term solution to increase water production capacity at the West End site is being worked on.
Minister of Tourism and Ports Kenneth Bryan said he is aware of the issue and blamed it on recent “unprecedented levels of heat and dryness” causing the water table to become low.
Speaking on Radio Cayman on Friday, 14 April, he said Deputy Premier and Minister for District Administration Juliana O’Connor-Connolly has raised the issue as a matter of priority and urgency.
“She spoke to us in Cabinet this week,” Bryan said, “and they are doing everything they can to make sure that they resolve the problem.”
He added: “Now I know sometimes people have whispers about what they think it may be like leaks – but there’s a genuine call for more water.
“The water company over there doesn’t take it lightly to restrict a certain amount of water per month because of this situation.”
A vital resource
The minister said it is likely to be a temporary situation because, as the rainy weather starts to come back, the water levels will recover.
“It’s a vital resource,” he added, noting that there is no reverse osmosis plant on the Brac and that is something the government will need to start considering “if this is going to be a sustained problem”.
The Water Authority said the notice of change in its trucked water policy was published on its website on 22 March but not all customers had received the notice.
It expects that the limitation will be short-lived and service will soon be back to normal.
But, the authority added, “until such time, all customers are urged to use only what they need, for example, do not waste and conserve where possible”.
Customers should periodically check their plumbing and storage tanks, the authority said, and any leaks should be urgently repaired.
An updated press release on Friday said works are continuing on the water production plant in order to increase its production capacity.
“This additional production capacity will allow for a larger volume of orders to be filled daily and will also result in a shorter queue and quicker order turnarounds,” the authority said.
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