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Baby, it’s dry outside

The islands are in the beginning stages of a drought, according to a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in San Juan, the St. John Source reported.  "That was the driest January on record," said Rafael Mojica.

Making the lack of moisture more troublesome is the low humidity which only adds to the risk of fire, he said. According to forecasters at Weatherunderground.com, rainfall this month has been 10% of normal.

What this means to people on St. John is noise.  More water trucks than usual can be heard coursing across the island to fill cisterns at rental villas.  

A load of water, 4,200 gallons, goes for $365 or 8.7 cents a gallon.  By some calculations, that would mean a five-minute shower uses $1 worth of water.  

On St. Thomas, because water reserves are low, some people are being asked to conserve and residents may find they have little water pressure during the daylight hours.  This is because several pumping stations are being repaired.

So,  the usual caution to visitors … please watch your water use.  On St. John, except for Cruz Bay which gets its water via an underwater pipe, the only water available comes from the sky and into the cisterns.  

2 thoughts on “Baby, it’s dry outside”

  1. If you are using 11 Gal. to take a shower the cistern isn’t low because of the drought – it is because of waste.

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