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Cafés, restaurants and takeaways in Gorey were able to breathe a sigh of relief this morning as supply finally returned – and one chippy which lost £10,000 due to the outage is now calling on islanders to support hospitality businesses' recovery from a "nightmare" week, as their fight for compensation continues.
Jersey's gas network has been down since Saturday, affecting more than 4,000 customers and around 400 businesses – including many restaurants who have had to cancel or scale back their bookings.
The process to restore the island's gas network is underway, with supply set to be restored to most homes by the end of today. Gorey – the home of gas-powered fish and chip shop Entwistles and The Moorings hotel and restaurant – was among the areas to be prioritised.
Earlier this week, Entwistles' owner Jon de Gruchy told Express that he was facing losses of £10,000 and considering legal action after being told there'd be no compensation – information he only gleaned by visiting Island Energy's Jersey offices due to what he described as a "nightmare" lack of communication.
He described the outage as "just another hit", explaining how the cost of living crisis and rising prices have hit fish and chip shops particularly hard as the ongoing war in Ukraine continues to push up oil prices exponentially.
After six days of waiting, Entwistles was last night visited by gas engineers, who turned the chippy's supply back on.
However, Mr de Gruchy was unable to make any sales yesterday as he had to run his machine for around five hours to make sure there were no air bubbles in the gas system.
Today, the fish and chip shop will be "back up and running", with Mr de Gruchy hoping for a lively Friday night.
However, he said that he knew other hospitality businesses who were yet to be reconnected, and would miss out on a "busy weekend" if they couldn't get up and running before the Friday night rush.
Mr de Gruchy urged islanders to support local hospitality businesses such as restaurants and takeaways over the weekend, after many missed out on almost a week of business.
And the Entwistles owner said that the "next step" was fighting for compensation. Island Energy CEO Jo Cox had previously said this would be on a "case-by-case basis", but Mr de Gruchy said he had been told he wouldn't receive any.
"Even if my insurance covers the losses, I'll still carry on fighting for compensation for the sake of other people who might be in the same boat," said Mr de Gruchy.
Earlier in the week, Jersey Hospitality Association CEO Marcus Calvani urged local hospitality firms to "continue tracking their losses and potential losses and extra increased costs that they've incurred".
Pictured: JHA CEO Marcus Calvani said JHA would fight to ensure local hospitality businesses are compensated.
"Once the dust has settled, we will be having an association-wide meeting about compensation.
"It will be easy to prove the losses, so as an association we will have to develop a standard compensation claim. We will be there fighting for our members, to the very end," he said.
Just round the corner at The Moorings Hotel and Restaurant in Gorey, the gas was being turned back on this morning.
Owner Matthew Jones, who runs The Moorings with his wife Iselin, described it as a "huge relief, after not knowing all week when and if it would be switched back on and not getting clear messaging from Island Energy".
He explained: "Last Saturday, we lost about 75% of bookings, and while we made alternative arrangements, bought a big woodfire to cook on Sunday, we haven’t been able to offer our full menu since then.
"By lunchtime today we should have everything up and running. We haven't known when or whether to order things in. We thought it was turning on Tuesday, then Wednesday, then Thursday, and we were called last night at 21:30 and told us it would be this morning."
Pictured: The Moorings owner said that they lost 75% of bookings last Saturday.
Mr Jones continued: "We are definitely going to count up all our losses and costs and see if there’s compensation from Island Energy.
"They have said they will communicate with customers as to what or if compensation will be provided. But it’s been so frustrating, not being able to run a business as you would wish to, everything had to be put on a backburner this week.
"It’s not just financial cost, it’s the time it’s taken all of us, we haven’t done anything other than figure out how to keep our business open and customers happy.
"Communication is absolutely key, and we feel they have not communicated it well from the outset."
Speaking to Express yesterday afternoon, Island Energy's Jo Cox confirmed that gas supply should be restored to most homes by the end of Friday – and islanders are likely to experience a smell of gas for up to 10 minutes.
The network was turned on yesterday at 13:00 and customers started being reconnected from 16:30.
"Key supply points" at Les Quennevais, Tunnell Street, Grouville, Rozel and Gorey Hill were checked by engineers.
Commercial customers and other "priority" customers will be prioritised, while others who need to be visited by an engineer may have to wait until the end of Sunday.
Commenting on the reconnection this morning, Home Affairs Minister Helen Miles said: "The States of Jersey Fire and Rescue Service have been working collaboratively with Island Energy as part of this process. The States of Jersey Police remain committed to helping Island Energy, if required.
"Contingency arrangements for support from Island Energy and Government remain in place should they be needed. We will continue to liaise with Island Energy until the gas supply is restored to all commercial and domestic customers.
"This is welcome news following a very challenging period for islanders."
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