Corporation chairman: Desal shutdown will be disastrous

COUVA/TABAQUITE/TALPARO Regional Corporation chairman Henry Awong is predicting that the planned 16-day shutdown by the Desalination Company of TT (Desalcott) will be disastrous for the region.WASA acting chief executive officer Alan Poon King and Desalcott general manager John Thompson, at a media conference on Thursday, said the desal plant will undergo routine maintenance from September 30 to October 15.Poon King advised customers in central and south Trinidad to “conserve and store” prior to the plant being taken offline. Desalcott produces 40 million gallons per day.In a statement on Friday, Awong said the corporation is “bracing” for numerous calls from residents as the impending shutdown can “only spell disaster for the region.” “With the Couva/Tabaquite/Talparo Regional Corporation severely crippled by the lack of releases, this is the only conceivable outcome in the upcoming weeks.”He said they were “already overwhelmed” with calls from residents from Brasso and Eccles Village who have not had a supply of water in weeks. “Even though we are in the peak of the rainy season, and far less with the plant currently in operation, burgesses continue to suffer extensively.”He said several communal tanks throughout the region remain empty as WASA has failed to fill them on time.“Furthermore, there are persons without a supply of water for over two months in communities such as Whiteland, and with an unreliable water scheduling system in place, how can persons adhere to the calls to store up on water.”He said the corporation owes over $600,000 to water trucking contractors while the its single water truck remains down for repairs.