By Shenia Roberts
Journal Staff Writer
Residents of Eleuthera are receiving some relief after being faced with a long-standing issue with
consistent water supply. After 15 years with no solution this issue is being resolved in what has
been described by officials as an historic moment. Sylvanus Petty Member of Parliament for
North Eleuthera commented on this long-running issue during an interview with press outside
the House of Assembly where he assured residents that their issues would soon be resolved
permanently. Petty shared that the government is currently filling a new three hundred
thousand gallon tank in Harbour Island Eleuthera which will replace the old damaged one.
The MP for North Eleuthera shared that the old tank had been leaking for over 15 years and
expressed a sense of relief for his constituents. This leak has caused continuous disruptions in
supply and has led to so much frustration among residents that they initiated a strike a few
weeks prior to this announcement. Consequently, MP Petty emphasized that the new tank is
expected to rectify this issue for the next 20 years.
Additionally, Minister Petty said although he knows the upgrade took longer than anticipated
he is happy to provide relief to his citizens. When asked if he feels the whole ordeal has
developed a political connotation he responded saying “we are not here to point fingers at who
didn’t do it, I’m here, I’m getting it done and that’s it.” Subsequently he shared that residents
will see the full effect as the week progresses, stating that they are distributing and fulling
simultaneously so the process will last a few days.
Moreover, Petty added that he has seen the public outcry on social media but says he
understands and has “broad shoulders”. He explained further stating that “the people of North
Eleuthera elected him to go out and push” assuring the public that while they were speaking
out on social media he was getting work done behind the scenes.
Although Petty assured residents water supply would be reliable in time for the regatta on the
upcoming holiday weekend, he informed the public that in just six months updates are

expected to be fully completed and residents will experience no issues with consistent service
for at least 20 years.