Vessel severed water line to Grand Isle, trucks shipping bottled water to island

Truckloads of bottled water are on their way to residents in Grand Isle after a barge hit and severed a water line from Laffite to the barrier island.

As a result, Grand Isle’s water supply ran out and Jefferson Parish leaders are now sending truckloads of fresh drinking water. A barge filled with fresh water is also being sent to fill the island's water tanks.

Parish workers immediately began work to repair the water line. A boiled water advisory is in effect for the area. Water sevice is expected to be permanently restored by Sunday morning.

A bottled water distribution site is set up at the Grand Isle Multiplex at 3101 Highway 1.

Jefferson Parish is working to restore water after a vessel hit and severed the water line from Lafitte to Grand Isle yesterday. The current water supply is expected to run out on the island by 10 a.m. this morning. Water is expected to be permanently restored by Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning. If water pressure is lost as anticipated around 10 a.m., a boil water advisory will be in effect once the water pressure is restored and will last approximately 24 hours until required lab testing can confirm that the supply is safe to drink. The Jefferson Parish Water Department immediately began mobilizing for restoration after discovering the water line break and began arrangements to barge and truck water to the storage tanks in Grand Isle. Currently, a barge with a capacity of approximately 420,000 gallons is being loaded with water in Lafitte. It is roughly estimated that the loading will be complete by noon. The travel time from Lafitte to Grand Isle is approximately four hours, pending favorable weather conditions; therefore, it is anticipated that water pressure can be restored temporarily to the system by this afternoon between 4:30 and 6:30 p.m. As a result, Jefferson Parish anticipates a period of approximately 6 ½ to 7 ½ hours for which Grand Isle will have no water pressure available. In coordination with the Town of Grand Isle, Jefferson Parish will set up a bottled water distribution site at the Grand Isle Multiplex (3101 Highway 1). Approximately 20,000 bottles of water are estimated to arrive at the Multiplex no later than 1 p.m. today.

A post shared by Jefferson Parish Government (@jeffparishgov) on Jul 24, 2020 at 7:38am PDT