Oranjestad- To the dismay of many consumers on the island, the reliable distribution of water on the island remains a challenge, even in the year 2019.

The latest bout of problems started on February 5 with an announcement by the utility company that due to urgent work on the main line, water would be switched off for the bigger part of the day. In the initial communication of STUCO on their Facebook Page, the utility company promised that water would be back later that evening.

On February 7th, the company announced that there would be rationing of water in place, with water being provided daily only between 5 and 8 AM, followed by the provision of water between 5 and 8 PM. The company expected the rationing to last throughout the weekend.

However, in a new message on the company’s Facebook Page published today, STUCO announced that rationing would be continued through Friday 15th, 2019.

Inability to accurately predict duration of outages

One of the issues causing dismay is that periods of rationing or the interruption of services are extended time and again, raising questions about the ability of the company to accurately predict the duration of service outages.

While there has been discussion on St. Eusatius on progress made on the island after the Dutch Intervention, the reliable distribution of something as fundamental as streaming water remains an issue in the year 2019 and it is doubtful if a concrete improvement in the reliability of this essential service will be achieved anytime soon.