Giraudel/Eggleston/Castle Comfort water supply project commissioned

Roseau, Dominica – August 2, 2007……..Minister for Public Works and Public Utilities, and Parliamentary Representative for the Roseau South Constituency, Hon. Ambrose George could barely contain his excitement and joy yesterday at the commissioning of the Giraudel/Eggleston/Castle Comfort Water Supply Project at the Eggleston playing field.

“Water is life indeed and what we are experiencing here now is a new life for the residents of Eggleston, Giraudel and upper Castle Comfort. And now we know what it is like to get up in the morning and turn on the tap in our homes and see the water flow….That in itself is a new dispensation. It is almost a new source of life for the people of Giraudel, Eggleston and Upper Castle Comfort and I know how you feel my dear constituents,” said the beaming Roseau South M.P at a ceremony attended by the Prime Minister, members of Cabinet, Officials from Dominica Water & Sewage Company (DOWASCO) as well as hundreds of residents from the surrounding communities.

In his remarks, Hon. Ambrose George also told the story of Mrs. Natilia Giraudel who turned 100 last month and the fact that she was only able to turn on the tap for the first time in one hundred years last month. Hon. George who has championed this Water project since he became Parliamentary Representative for the Roseau South Constituency in the year 2000, recalled the occasions he had to take water to the residents of Eggleston and Giraudel via a truck in response to their many calls to his home over many years.

The Project began in March 2005 and was completed in June 2007, one year behind schedule. The contractors were Robinson, John and Shillingford and the project design consultants were ACE Engineering. The supervision was carried out by DOWASCO engineers. Described by both the General Manager and Chairman of the Board of Directors of DOWASCO as a very “challenging” project, it involved: installation of 39,405 ft of pipes of various sizes, two high capacity generators, two water pumps, the construction of a generator shed, a pump house, an intake, laying of 2000ft of armoured cable, installation of one step up and one step down transformer, renovation works to Giraudel water storage tank, construction of a new 30,000 gallon storage tank at upper Castle Comfort as well as other works.

Joyce Samuel, a resident of Eggleston was equally excited as she described the feeling of the residents now that they have realised their dream of having pipe-borne water: “Today is really a great day for Giraudel and Eggleston. What my parents, my grandparents, my great grandparents never saw is here today…. During the drought we have been going through a lot of problems, we had to be paying transport to get water sometimes and not all transport drivers were willing to help us get water…… That day we got water in June … look pressure, I really made use of it that day and I know a lot of other villagers took a nice shower because the pressure of the water really massaged our bodies..….”

Addresses at the formal commissioning of the new water supply system also came from the General Manager of DOWASCO, Mr. Bernard Ettinoff and Chairman of the Board of the Directors, Mr. Larry Bardouille. The feature address was delivered by Prime Minister, Hon. Roosevelt Skerrit.

Out of a project cost to date of $5.7 million, the sum of $3.2 million came from a loan from the National Bank of Dominica, a loan which was guaranteed by the Government of Dominica. Another $2.5 million came from the coffers of DOWASCO.

The Giraudel/Eggleston/Castle Comfort Water Supply Project is the third major project undertaken by DOWASCO since the year 2000. In 2002, the Roseau Water and Sewerage project was completed at a cost $62 million. In 2006, the Wotten/Waven/Trafalgar and Copthall Water Project was completed at a cost of $3.6 million.

In 1999, the United Workers Party Government held a ground-breaking ceremony in Giraudel signalling their intention to commence work on the Giraudel/Eggleston/Castle Comfort Water Supply System. It was later revealed that there was no money to undertake that project.