Bomb Threat Disrupts Work at Harley Power Plant

At approximately 9:20 a.m. today, someone made a call to the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s Subbase business office threatening to “blow up” St. Thomas’ Randolph E. Harley Power Plant in one hour. The Virgin Islands Police Department was immediately notified as well as the National Reporting Center which in term notifies the appropriate federal agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security. The plant was evacuated of all personnel except for a very skeleton crew needed to keep the power on in St. Thomas and St. John.

“We need the public to understand that bomb threats are a very serious problem for us,” said Hugo Hodge, Jr. WAPA’s Executive Director. Not only is it disconcerting for the employees and the public, it is extremely costly to WAPA and its customers, Hodge said.

WAPA currently has maintenance and repair crews in the Harley Power Plant working on several units that have not been available to generate reliable power in the plant for many months. Because the contractors as well as WAPA employees are required to clear the plant and remain outside of the plant until the search for a possible bomb is completed, time and money is lost by the Authority.

As a precautionary measure, WAPA has increased security at all of its facilities throughout the territory. “WAPA will do everything in its power to assist the local and federal authorities to find the perpetrator of this crime and bring that person to justice, Hodge concluded.