💧 Water and Power · U.S. Virgin Islands
WAPA said damaged Feeder 13 caused rotational outages on St. Thomas and St. John
Official document: https://www.viwapa.vi/docs/default-source/2023-pr/press-release-(9.18.23)-authority-provides-clarification-on-scheduled-rotational-outages.pdf?sfvrsn=379ccb54_3
The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority said on September 18, 2023, that scheduled rotational outages in the St. Thomas-St. John district were caused by damage to Feeder 13, a main transmission line from the Randolph Harley Power Plant to the Tutu Substation.
WAPA said the damage occurred during repair work on September 16, 2023, when a duct bank was punctured and an electrical cable inside it was damaged. The authority said the cable was part of Feeder 13, which carries power from the Randolph Harley Power Plant to the Tutu Substation.
According to the authority, with Feeder 13 out of service, it had to rely on Feeder 12 to carry most of the district's electrical load, except for feeders that originate at the power plant. WAPA said Feeder 12 did not have enough capacity to serve all remaining customers outside the plant, leading to rotating outages on B, C and E feeders.
WAPA said Feeder 13 continued to trip during repair efforts, indicating additional damage had not yet been located. The authority said rotational outages were expected to continue until the line was fully repaired.
The rotation schedule published on September 18 called for outages from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. on feeders 7B and 9E, from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on feeders 7E and 7C, and from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. on feeders 10B and 9C. The same sequence was scheduled to repeat from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., and 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.