Dry pipes in Akers since Christmas Eve – Resident

“No water at all,” said 81 year old Eldika Murray, who claims to be the oldest resident of Akers, one of the several villages that comprise the Marriaqua Valley.

She was speaking about the water situation in that part of the community.

Murray recounted that since she was a young girl, there was always a problem with the water supply, and during the 2024 festive season, pipe-borne water was last available on Christmas Eve, December 24, 2024.

SEARCHLIGHT visited the area on Tuesday, December 31, 2024, and learnt that many residents often go to the homes of relatives and friends elsewhere to get a shower.

Incidentally, residents said shortly after our news team left, water returned and lasted up until 3:00 p.m the following day, Wednesday, January 1, 2025.

Living in an elevated part of Akers, Murray said it is challenging getting pipe-borne water, partly because of the pressure, and the dirt road makes it more difficult when the truck comes by to deliver water.

“Christmas came and we didn’t get any water. All now so, since yesterday; and I can’t [carry] water, I 81, I can’t do that,” Murray pointed out.

Other residents complained that the CWSA does not inform them when water will be available. Many have adjusted their routines so they can collect water from the system at odd hours such as 12:00 a.m and 4:00 a.m.

“Right now I’m sick because of that. I have a lot of clothes to wash and I have to come outside to put them in the washing machine, make multiple trips and even fill the tank- all of this in the dew,” said Daniel Jack.

Jack explained that the CWSA trucked water to the community on Christmas Day, and he was thankful as many of the residents were able to do some cleaning.

The vocal resident explained that in the early 2000s, the CWSA had set up a fibre-glass tank, which was replaced by a concrete tank in 2010, as water from the previous tank was undermining the foundation of some homes.

While the concrete tank is at a higher elevation, Murray said residents in the area still find it a challenge obtaining pipe-borne water.

Residents said over the years, the Authority has claimed to be unaware of the cause of the problem, and some were told that engineers would look into the problem, but nothing has changed.

“Sometimes you ask them to give an estimate of when the water will be back, they can’t say. We’ve made several calls and sent emails and all they say is that they don’t know, and it’s not a new problem, it has been years.”

Jack said 2024 was one of the worst in terms of water availability. He and another resident, Johanna Woods, said after the passage of Hurricane Beryl they had water until the end of October, then the problem resurfaced.

“…they had the water on until late in the night, then they’ll turn it off. It was fine, they had water all through the two months for that summer time, which was surprising and I commend them for that,” Woods told SEARCHLIGHT.

Woods, who lives lower down in the village, and whose husband owns a business in the community, said

the unreliable water supply is a burden for persons who are into agri-processing.

“There are some persons who do seasonings, and these things need water. Some other people might do food and so; everything needs water, and we suffering here for a very long time.”

Other residents told our news team they have made several reports to the CWSA on their social media accounts, even as recently as Christmas Eve.

As SVG prepares for the 2025 dry season the Akers residents said they are not fazed as they experience drought year-round.

They said all they want for this new year is better customer service from the CWSA, and to get water on a more consistent basis.

Two residents along the La Croix main road also said they experience similar problems to those of the Akers residents.

One of them, Seithroy Edwards, a retired agricultural officer, said he started having water problems in 2022 after he was transferred from the Belmont tank to the Akers facility.

“My [household] has lodged complaints with CWSA …. thesituation has gotten worse during the past two months. We were without water for about 62 hours before Christmas,” Edwards told SEARCHLIGHT.

The CWSA said they had no immediate comments on the issue, but would provide an update in due course.