Power Restoration To Most Parts By March

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(PLTM) - With assistance from its Caribbean counterparts and the United Kingdom (UK), the government is targeting March next year to have power restored in most parts of the Territory.

Hon. Mark Vanterpool, Minister of Communications and Works, told reporters that though he cannot give a specific time frame, they are expecting that the most densely populated areas will be back up and running within a three to four months period.

He said, "...(We hope to have) most of the country back up and running on electricity power in six months. Heavily populated areas, we are trying to get them up and running within 90 days…By the end of the year we will have most back up and running."

Following Hurricane Irma on September 6, electricity was knocked out Territory wide; however, some persons have been utilizing generators, while the BVI Electricity Corporation (BVIEC) managed to get power to some areas in central Road Town.

Minister Vanterpool said that more poles and lines will be arriving in the Territory from overseas within two weeks.

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He explained that the assistance of crew from other Caribbean islands, including Dominica, have been reduced due to the effects of Hurricane Maria on those islands. However, he said other workers will be arriving from Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Bermuda and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

Meanwhile, Secretary of State for DFID, Priti Patel, who arrived in the Territory over the weekend, visited the BVIEC's Pockwood Pond Plant.

"...We were all able to tour the Pockwood Pond facility and discuss financial assistance for the corporation. The visit to the plant was essential because without power, nothing happens, businesses can't open and the economy cannot move forward, which is why the BVIEC team got to work as quickly as they did, and why we need as much assistance as we can get," Premier Hon. Dr. D. Orlando Smith said on Sunday, September 24 following the visit.

He said that they look forward to receiving the support of additional linesmen from St. Vincent, Belize, and St. Lucia, as well as other resources and equipment from regional partners so that they can get the Territory powered back up.

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