BPL workers in Pinewood on Saturday.
By SANCHESKA DORSETT
Tribune Staff Reporter
sdorsett@tribunemedia.net
NEARLY a dozen Bahamas Power and Light Company (BPL) bucket trucks are not operational and several diggers have “broken down” since BPL crews began hurricane recovery efforts in New Providence, according to Bahamas Electrical Workers Union (BEWU) President Paul Maynard.
Mr Maynard told The Tribune that “if the powers that be” had listened to him and have a hydraulic specialist repair the bucket trucks, which he said have been broken down for months, power could have been restored to the island quicker, “because more men would be able to be on the road”.
He also said several diggers, which are needed to replace the broken poles, have stopped working, placing crews at a huge disadvantage.
“I think it’s about 13 of them (bucket trucks) that are not working and most of the diggers have gone down,” Mr Maynard said.
“We need a specialist to come in and fix the trucks. I suggested a while ago that we send some of our own people to learn how to fix these trucks and I was told no. The company was scared the men were going to come back and work for someone else.
“I even gave them the number of a guy who could fix it, but they don’t listen to me. They know it all.
“You have these people on this hurricane committee who do what they want to do. If we had (those) trucks we could have been further along with hurricane repair. We also need those diggers to change the broken poles. We have three diggers working and I think they are trying to rent one but we will see what happens.”
Free National Movement (FNM) Leader Dr Hubert Minnis also criticised BPL yesterday. In a statement, Dr Minnis said while BPL crews are working hard to restore electricity, the company and the government must give those without power a definitive timeline for restoration.
“Under the most difficult circumstances, the workers at the Bahamas Power and Light Company have been working extremely hard to restore electricity to all Bahamians on New Providence,” Dr Minnis said. “As they work tirelessly to restore power, it is time for BPL management and the government to provide the people still struggling without power with a timeline for the restoration results.
“From the beginning, BPL has said that after they completed their assessment of the damage they would begin working from the largest areas affected to the smallest areas. This means that BPL and the government by now should have an idea of when and where work will be occurring every day until the work is completed.
“Bahamians have a right to know the schedule that BPL plans to follow in their efforts to restore power to the entire Island. Right now too many Bahamian families and businesses have been left in the dark - both literally and figuratively. They need this information so they are able to make plans and start their own restoration efforts. Many Bahamians are still staying with family and friends with no knowledge of when they can return to their homes.
“ ... There are certain areas in Seabreeze and Southern Shores that will take a long time to recover from this storm but it is time to allow everyone else to know when they can take steps to try and return to normal. Though Hurricane Matthew struck the Bahamas with all of its force last week, it is clear that the storm has not broken the resiliency of the Bahamian people.
“I know in my heart that the Bahamas can and will come back stronger. We will get through this working together with our neighbours, friends and family to help each other rebuild,” Dr Minnis said.
A day earlier, Mr Maynard blasted the “co-ordinators” at BPL for being “inefficient” and organising the “worst hurricane recovery effort” he has ever seen.
He said if certain BPL officials had “listened to advice from the union” more areas of New Providence would have been restored and BPL’s restoration timeline would be significantly shorter.
In a statement on Monday, BPL said it could not give an exact time for full restoration, but the company expects most customers to be back on supply by the end of the week. However, Mr Maynard said “two to three weeks” is more realistic.
Yesterday, BPL CEO Pam Hill said electricity was restored to just over 50 per cent of its customers in New Providence and restoration in the Family Islands was “substantially” complete.
BPL also said it expects restoration efforts to ramp up significantly when assistance from international partners arrives on the island. Some were expected to arrive last night. BPL has sourced help from the Caribbean Association of Electric Utilities, which is sending at least three teams to the island.
Comments
lazybor 8 years, 2 months ago
shameful...
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DDK 8 years, 2 months ago
CHANGING THE NAME FROM BEC TO BPL, FOR WHATEVER CONVOLUTED REASON, DOES NOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT THE CORPORATION AS LED BY THE BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT IS A NATIONAL DISGRACE. AS WITH EVERYTHING ELSE IN THIS POOR COUNTRY, THE HIGH FEES CHARGED FOR POOR SERVICE NEVER GO ANYWHERE BUT TO THE INSATIABLY GREEDY POCKETS OF THE CHOSEN FEW. FOR SHAME. WHY THE POPULATION OF THE BAHAMAS ALLOWS THE GOVERNMENT TO TREAT ITS PEOPLE SO DISGRACEFULLY IS BEYOND ME. IT'S TIME FOR ALL BAHAMIANS, INCLUDING THOSE EMPLOYED BY THE BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT, TO TAKE A STAND FOR WHAT IS RIGHT, FOR THE GOOD OF THE COUNTRY WHICH IS RAPIDLY HEADING SOUTH. THE SITUATION IS DIRE.
BoopaDoop 8 years, 2 months ago
13 bucket trucks is a significant number. No wonder several people have said they haven't seen a BEC truck in their area since the storm passed. It is funny that Paul Maynard has provided this information which explains some of the slow restoration but Pam Hill can only say "soon".
sheeprunner12 8 years, 2 months ago
Perry should have bitten the bullet and privatized (fire sale to Bahamians) the Family Island electrical plants and then concentrated on revamping the Nassau plant ......... just like Bahamasair should be used to bring tourists to our country as the national flag carrier and privatize the Family Island routes to the local small carriers ............... but the kickbacks and contracts are too tempting to the crooked politicians/cronies
sheeprunner12 8 years, 2 months ago
What is so frustrating about this is that Bahamians have no light and Perry and Brave do not have to take responsibility for BEC because they gave control to PowerSecure ........ same thing with how they pass off hurricane relief to NEMA & Shane Gibson ........... and all Perry & Brave have to do is fly around, entertain foreign PMs and donors and give out crony contracts in order to get ready for the election ........... give them credit for their genius!!!!!!!
Well_mudda_take_sic 8 years, 2 months ago
It's important to have an understanding of the reality of the situation faced by Pamela Hill so that public anger can be focused where it rightfully should be aimed - AT PERRY CHRISTIE! The U.S. company (Power Secure) hired to manage the aged assets of the former BEC (i.e. old poorly maintained and inadequate power generating equipment plus unsatisfactory power distribution system in many areas) have their hands tied by the corrupt Christie-led PLP government. The management company is not responsible for providing the financing necessary to replace and/or upgrade the unsatisfactory and improperly maintained equipment and grid lines that were previously very poorly managed by representatives of the corrupt Christie-led PLP government. Christie and his merry band of bandits have failed in their undertaking made to the U.S. management company that adequate financing would be obtained by the PLP government to replace and/or upgrade the aged assets of the former BEC. But Perry Christie, true to form, has demonstrated his incompetency by failing to put in place an appropriate means of raising the financing for asset upgrades and replacement assets Pamela Hill has told Christie time and time again are absolutely vital in order for Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) to meet our country's electrification needs. Christie knew his government (and the previous Ingraham-led government) had run BEC right into the ground making it impossible for his government to continue managing BEC without considerable political fall out. So what does he do? Christie decides to hire a U.S. management company to manage the former aged assets of BEC under the false pretense that his government would immediately be arranging for adequate financing to put BPL in a good position to meet their management mandate of ensuring a reliable power supply to customers. But this has not happened and now Christie seeks to use BPL/Pamela Hill to absorb the political fall out that should be inflicted on him personally.....Christie has actually now told Pamela Hill that part of her job is to take the political heat for the inadequacies of BPL that are in fact attributable to Christie's own failure to raise the financing necessary for the capital needs of BPL. All of the blame for BPL's shortcomings in restoring power to its customers in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew properly rest with Christie himself and no one else. Pamela Hill should no longer allow herself to be wrongfully used by Christie as a punching bag for the ferocious blows of public discontentment that should be squarely falling on him personally!
banker 8 years, 2 months ago
Hold on, a Special Purpose Vehicle and a bond are being issued to pay for the repairs. Prime Minister Crisco Butt is having fun issuing all sorts of new government bonds. Thank god and glory hallelujah for debt bonds!
Well_mudda_take_sic 8 years, 2 months ago
The CEO's of the local clearing banks, both the Canadian controlled banks and the Bahamian owned ones, should be telling Christie in a blunt forthright manner that they cannot afford to run the finances of their banks in the same way that Christie runs the finances of the Bank of The Bahamas (BoB) and our country; otherwise they would quickly become as financially crippled as BoB and the entire nation of the Bahamas! If Christie wrongfully tries through legislation and/or regulation to force the local clearing banks to buy hurricane relief effort bonds issued by the corrupt Christie-led PLP government, the Canadian controlled banks (RBC, RBC-FINCO, CIBC-FCIB and BNS) should all balk and make plans to exit the Bahamas at the earliest possible time. Christie and his two lackies, Michael Halkitis and John Rolle, have about as much financial sense between them as three budgies accidentally given gin or vodka instead of water!
sheeprunner12 8 years, 2 months ago
WTF????? .............. If the local BEC fellas in Long Island planted 800 poles in two weeks with one drill truck and hung them with two bucket trucks, why those lazy ass Nassau fellas cannot work with whatever limited resources they have????? ......... stop the BMW (bitch, moan & whine)
Socrates 8 years, 2 months ago
These tings always go deeper than they appear. Each side gives bits and pieces of information to put them in the most favorable light. Management has to cover government and the Union sniffs opportunity to move in for the kill on management. Politicians see it as campaigning material.. such is the nature of democratic society I suppose.
Well_mudda_take_sic 8 years, 2 months ago
Power Secure (as the management company of BPL) is under no obligation to finance from their own pocket the necessary significant capital and other expenditures needed to quickly restore power to our communities. That obligation rests entirely with the corrupt Christie-led PLP government and, as we all well know, Christie can't bring himself to do anything quickly that is of no financial benefit to himself and his merry band of bandits. After Hurricane Joaquin last year, Pam Hill wrote several letters to NEMA, which she copied to several senior cabinet ministers (including you know who), advising that BPL required government financing to effect critical equipment upgrades in order to be much better prepared to cope with catastrophe events like Hurricane Matthew. But Christie, true to form, did nothing to heed Pam Hill's advice and recommendations. Instead Christie chose to pre-occupy himself with forging personally lucrative relationships with his new found Chinese friends! It is absolutely remarkable that Power Secure has been able to restore power to 70% of its customers within a week of the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew given that Christie has Pam Hill working her butt off with both hands tied behind her back as a result of the many failures of the corrupt Christie-led PLP government! There are many homes and businesses in the Carolinas that are expected to be without power for at least another couple of weeks. Angry Bahamians still without power need to focus their anger where it properly belongs - at none other than Christie himself!
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