Drinking water production at a standstill

Due to the heavy swell generated yesterday, Tuesday August 13, by the passage of storm Ernesto, the management of Sidem's drinking water production plant was forced to shut down the machines in the evening. This complete stoppage continues today, Wednesday August 14, no longer due to the power of the swell, but to its disruptive effects. This morning, the turbidity of the seawater near Sidem's sensors in Public's commercial port continues to prevent pumping from being restarted. The risk is to damage the sensors and the filters that purify the water before it is treated at the plant. Sidem's management is also waiting for an expert opinion from the divers who are due to check the equipment in the vicinity of the suction chamber. This operation was not possible at the start of the morning due to the turbulence of the water and the suspended matter around the intake site.

For all these reasons, Sidem's management is not planning to restart its machines and production today. Unless, of course, the situation improves later today. In any case, as Saur (the island's drinking water company) has stated in an online publication, once production has resumed, a number of Sidem's plants will be shut down.s production resumed, it will take several days for the entire distribution network to be supplied. A water shortage that cistern owners need not worry about.