North Hit by Major Water Cuts: 2-Day Disruption for Residents and Farmers

Thousands of residents and planters across North of Mauritius are facing a severe and prolonged interruption to their water supply starting tonight as the Central Water Authority (CWA) and the Irrigation Authority (IA) begin essential maintenance.

The disruption, due to major upkeep work on the main valve of the IA’s principal pipeline, will run from 9:00 PM tonight, Tuesday, October 28, until 9:00 AM on Thursday, October 30. Customers are urged to fill up reserves as the CWA has warned that regular supply may not resume fully until Saturday, November 1, 2025.

Full Supply Cut-Off Imminent

The necessary works will require a complete cut-off of water supply for the entire duration of the operation in numerous northern localities.

Reservoirs directly affected include New Plaine-des-Papayes, Mon-Loisir Rouillard, Rouge-Terre, New Goodlands, and Old Goodlands.

This will cause significant supply issues in the following areas and their surrounding villages:

• Triolet
• Solitude
• Pointe-aux-Piments
• Pointe-aux-Biches
• Trou-aux-Biches
• Morcellement Saint-André
• Mont-Choisy
• Pointe-aux-Canonniers
• The Vale
• Grand-Baie
• Chemin Vingt-Pieds
• Pereybère
• Calodyne
• Saint-François
• Cap-Malheureux
• Petit-Raffray
• Réunion-Maurel

Farmers Face Irrigation Halt

In addition to domestic disruptions, agricultural irrigation will be halted on Wednesday, October 29, impacting planters across the region.

The IA has advised them to “take the necessary measures to protect their crops during this period.”

Restoration and Emergency Measures

The CWA is encouraging all domestic subscribers to build up sufficient water reserves.

The Authority anticipates that supply could remain irregular on Friday, October 31, with a full return to normal expected by Saturday morning, November 1, 2025.

To mitigate inconvenience, tanker trucks will be deployed in the hardest-hit zones.

The two authorities apologised for the inconvenience caused, thanking the public for their understanding and cooperation.

Urgent Repairs on 1,200mm Main

A technical officer explained yesterday that the work concerns a massive 1,200-millimetre diameter pipeline, some 25 to 30 kilometres long, which is used for both agricultural irrigation and domestic CWA supply.

“Over the years, this conduit, initially intended for irrigation, has undergone several modifications,” the official said, detailing that access points were installed to allow the CWA to draw supplementary water for areas like Triolet, Solitude, The Vale, Sottise, and Pereybère.

The urgent intervention was necessary following “several technical problems” encountered in recent weeks to “ensure the safety and reliability of the system.”

The network is scheduled to be closed at 9:00 PM tonight to be completely emptied, which is estimated to take between eight and ten hours due to the network’s length and capacity.

Technical work will take place throughout Wednesday before water is progressively reintroduced in the evening.

Full system refill and normal service restoration will take several more hours, with full recovery predicted “between Thursday evening and Saturday morning.”

Source: Le Mauricien