Hurricane Irma Water & Sewer Service Availability

Due to confusion over service availability and certain critical changes which have been made to the plan for water and sewer service throughout the Hurricane Irma storm event, BGJWSC is providing the following information regarding service availability:

Water service will not be interrupted on the mainland. Water service will be maintained on the mainland unless water lines or assets are damaged by storm effects to such a degree that water service can’t be maintained. Water pump stations are served by backup power generators to overcome loss of power from Georgia Power if and when that occurs.

Sewer service to the mainland will not be interrupted. However, some master assets will be taken out of service at 2:00 P.M. Sunday, September 10. System static capacity is sufficient to serve the remaining occupants who have to stay beyond the mandatory evacuation of Glynn County and the City of Brunswick. All master assets will be returned to service as soon as the storm has passed and permanent power is re-established.

Water service will be terminated on St. Simons Island at 2:00 P.M. Sunday, September 10 to facilitate a systematic or controlled shutdown of assets prior to Hurricane Irma’s impact on the island late that evening. This is to prevent damage or other system issues and to facilitate quick recovery once the storm has passed.

Sewer service will also be terminated on St. Simons Island at 2:00 P.M. Sunday, September 10. During the Hurricane Matthew event, several assets were left running and were damaged as a result. Due to this damage, their return to service went beyond power being re-established. In addition, numerous releases of sanitary sewage were experienced due to the lack of controlled restart of sewer assets. This again delayed entry into the area and caused potential exposure for those on the island to pathogens found in sewage.

Water and sewer systems will be restored on St. Simons Island as soon as the storm passes and permanent power is re-established provided that assets have not been damaged by storm effects.

With these efforts, our intent is to provide the quickest return of full service following the storm.

The BGJWSC thanks all our citizens for their patience and understanding.