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CUC’s water main breaks down
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Posted on Jan 15 2006
The Commonwealth Utilities Corp.’s water main supplying most parts of Garapan—including the tourist and commercial district—ruptured early yesterday morning, prompting the utility firm to temporarily shut down water supply to thousands of users.
CUC water division trade specialist Mariano Iglecias said the 16-inch water pipe sustained damage as water pressure varies daily. “There are signs of insufficient cushioning when it was constructed,” Iglecias said.
CUC spokesperson Pamela Mathis explained that the main was constructed in the 1990s. He said the PVC pipe needs cushioning to prevent damage as it moves due to water pressure. Soil and rock movement may also cause damage to the pipe.
Mathis said the utility firm discovered the problem early yesterday morning. CUC later detected the damage at the water main buried approximately nine feet underground on Chalan Pale Arnold, near the corner of Industrial Drive in Puerto Rico.
Mathis said the water interruption affected portions of Sadog Tasi, Puerto Rico and Garapan.
The CNMI Water Task Force’s contractor, Primtek Construction, responded to the site to restore water supply to normal as soon as possible. The contractor had to dig over nine feet underground to begin repair work, temporarily closing the outer southbound lane on Chalan Pale Arnold in the area.
At the site, Iglecias said, “The difficulty is having all the obstructions. We have underground cables and electric lines.” He said the task force had to coordinate the excavation work with Pacific Telecom, Inc., among others, to prevent interruption of other underground facilities.
At around 4pm yesterday, Iglecias said repair work could be completed after four to six hours. However, he said road paving would have to be done today, requiring the temporary closure of the affected lane to traffic. CUC assured that the contractor would install pipe cushion in its repair work.
Meanwhile, Mathis said that water pressure might take a day to normalize even as water supply could be restored after the completion of repair work.
