U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS – The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (“WAPA” or “Authority”) would like to notify the public that the Geographic Information Systems Inventory project for the Electric Transmission and Distribution division has commenced. Geographic Information Systems, also known as GIS, will aid in disaster recovery, accelerate response time to system problems, asset tracking, load monitoring, and system analysis, to name a few across the territory. The GIS will also aid with responsiveness for trouble calls where locating customers or tracing potential faults may be challenging.

Technicians from Davey Resource Group., a subcontractor for the project and a national leader in gathering accurate field data for utilities, will be visiting all VIWAPA Transmission and Distribution assets including WAPA poles, meters, and padmount equipment. Davey Resource Group crews will be starting on the island of St. John, this week, June 20, 2023. There will also be an additional visit in late July to collect data from each manhole. Once St. John is completed, technicians will proceed to St. Croix, followed by St. Thomas. All field data will be processed and configured via Symbiosa- a company that provides Professional Utility Data Management services.

Community members should note the Davey Resource Group technicians will be using video cameras and other devices during the field inventory, and can be identified by their WAPA Contractor ID badges, safety vests, and a Letter of Authority (available upon request). Technicians will also soon have WAPA decals with their vehicles. All residents, business owners, and local authorities are requested to provide full cooperation during the inventory project.

Any questions concerning the project may be directed to Ambi Blyden, Interim Planning and Design Manager at 774-3552 extension 2270 or Marquis McGregor in St. Croix, Electrical Engineer III at extension 3033. More information on the GIS inventory process can also be found by visiting https://youtu.be/3aSNtMzMxyk.