74.7 F
Charlotte Amalie
Friday, March 29, 2024
HomeNewsArchivesWAPA Blasting Activities Begin at St. Thomas Plant

WAPA Blasting Activities Begin at St. Thomas Plant

The V.I. Water and Power Authority will be blasting on the hillside southwest of the St. Thomas Randolph Harley power plant for the next month in preparation for the upcoming switch to propane for power generation, according to WAPA. WAPA contractor Vitol will begin blasting Wednesday and continue for the next 30 days.

Blasting will be carried out once a day, with the exception of Saturdays, Sundays and the Easter holidays.

Demex Environmental Group, a blasting contractor subcontracted by Vitol, will conduct the blasting at 9:30 a.m. each day, barring any unforeseen circumstances. If there is a delay on a given day, blasting will occur at 12:30 p.m. These blasts will be carried out with very small charges, WAPA said.

"The authority has conducted all necessary safety awareness workshops and drills at the plant facility over the past several days to ensure awareness and safety of WAPA employees and the facility. We do not anticipate any flying objects or any effect on the public or WAPA’s active plant site," a WAPA spokesperson said in a statement.

During the scheduled blasts, traffic on the roadway beside the WAPA facilities will be restricted. WAPA is advising the public that the roadway between WAPA’s plant and Arians Bar, at the entrance of the Texaco bulk storage terminal, will have heavy truck traffic moving material from the blast site to a temporary storage area and to consider avoiding the area and taking a different route.

For more information on WAPA’s switch to propane, visit poweringvi.vi or viwapa.vi.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Keeping our community informed is our top priority.
If you have a news tip to share, please call or text us at 340-228-8784.

Support local + independent journalism in the U.S. Virgin Islands

Unlike many news organizations, we haven't put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as accessible as we can. Our independent journalism costs time, money and hard work to keep you informed, but we do it because we believe that it matters. We know that informed communities are empowered ones. If you appreciate our reporting and want to help make our future more secure, please consider donating.