ELIZABETH Castle has been forced to close at the height of the tourist season after a broken pump left the island without running water.
The heritage site – which recently celebrated 100 years as a historic monument – shut at the weekend but was due to reopen today.
A Jersey Heritage spokesperson said: ‘We marked it as a health-and-safety issue because there would be no way to flush toilets, and no running water for the café to use.’
They added that there was a chance the system had been blocked.
‘It’s amazing what people flush down the toilet these days,’ the spokesperson said.
‘Because it’s an old castle and it’s 1970s pipe work, replacing a water pump is quite complicated and they are having to take out the entire system and replace it with a new one. It is tricky to get stuff out there.’
With the weather finally taking a turn for the better this week, the spokesperson added ‘it certainly wasn’t something we planned’.
‘There are lots of people on holiday now and it’s perfect weather. We hope that if people are here for a week or so then they’ll still get a chance to go to the castle.’
Even the castle’s Master Gunner Chris Dalkner and his partner, the islet’s only residents, had to retreat to the mainland while the problem with the water pump was being fixed.
‘Without toilets or running water, it’s not appropriate for people to be out there,’ the spokesperson explained.
