Engineer Jose Angel Pita Hernandez, the Institutes representative in Santiago, said the second wettest October in 80 years "only surpassed by hurricane Flora in 1963" brought pipe ruptures and serious damage to the two main waterlines serving the city.

Pita said some 300,000 residents were intermittently without water service because of land slides that left pipelines uncovered to suffer the weight and pressure of the water inside them and led to breakages.

The official said the decision was made to entirely replace the old water mains with new ones that are wider and stronger to guarantee a stable service and relieve the difficulties faced by the population in recent years.

The initial work is part of the titanic task undertaken by Santiago de Cuba to recover from the damage caused by the intense rain and flooding. The first phase of the sizeable investment in pipelines is scheduled to be completed in December and the rest in the first quarter of 2008. The new conduits will have a capacity of 900 liters per second.

Meanwhile, water company workers are keeping a close watch on the citys other two supply lines which date back to 1926 and the 1960s.

The city also struggles with aging water distribution pipes; 500 of its nearly 900 kilometers of pipes are between 80 and 100 years old.

Source: Granma