The largest Bulgarian resort "Sunny Beach", as well as all settlements from Ravda to Elenite, remained without a drop of water on Wednesday. The infrastructure problem occurs at a time when hotels are already welcoming their first guests, and large-scale construction and installation activities have paralyzed local business, reports the press center of ViK - Burgas.
Hoteliers on the Southern Black Sea coast were completely surprised by the mass shutdown of the water supply. Representatives of the tourism industry signaled that the lack of the vital resource threatens the nutrition of guests and the coverage of basic hygiene needs, "Danube Bridge" pointed out.
The state-owned company ViK - Burgas justifies its actions with the imperative connection of a central water supply system, which is a key part of the region's integrated water cycle. According to the institution, the municipality of Nessebar was officially notified of the shutdown a month ago, but the information apparently did not reach the real business in time.
Hotel managers had to organize crisis headquarters on the night of Wednesday to provide alternative sources of water for their guests.
Alexander Alexandrov: "Actually, on Tuesday, in the late afternoon, we learned that the water would be shut off in the entire region - from Ravda to Elenite. This means that all settlements will not have water."
The hotelier manages a facility with over 700 guests, including about 100 children.
Alexander Alexandrov: "Service will be extremely difficult, but we have organized it so that the effect on guests is minimal. We have provided drinking water, water for sanitary and hygienic needs, as well as for cooking. But we cannot last for too long like this."
Communication between the responsible institutions and the industry is proving to be the critical weak link in the situation.
Stoyka Terzieva: "I personally found out about the water shutdown from colleagues, and they - from their relatives and acquaintances who work in the water supply and sanitation department. That's how the information reached us."
She insists on the introduction of a working dialogue between industry organizations and the units responsible for infrastructure projects in order to better plan the time for such heavy repairs.
Stoyka Terzieva: "When we found out about the water shutdown, we sent a letter to every guest of the hotel. We explained that the situation was beyond our control, but we identified several points with toilets and showers where there is additional water provided in large containers. We have also provided additional staff to clean them."
Guests are provided with bottled water throughout the day, as well as specialized towels for emergency hygiene needs.