NI Water Appeal as the storm continues

03 March 2018 14:20

NI Water appeal as the storm continues

NI Water has mobilised resources as we see a growing impact of the extreme weather conditions on our assets. 

Our teams have been working throughout the night in freezing conditions and will work over the weekend to ensure customers continue to have a water supply. 

We have recorded an increase in pressure on our assets, however this is something that we are prepared for. We need the help of the public to protect their properties during this period.  The impact of burst pipes on private property cannot be over-estimated. 

In January 2011, a single burst pipe in a vacant business property lost over 30 million litres of water and resulted in loss of supply to surrounding homes.  This loss of water was enough to:

• Supply a family of 4 with water for 137 years
• Fill 15 million kettles 
• Make 120 million cups of tea

Please be extra vigilant, check buildings that may be closed over a number of days. In particular, farmers, schools and landlords, please check your sites to ensure there are no bursts on the property. 

During this time, our priority will be protecting our assets and mitigating the impact of the cold weather as far as possible.  However, the safety of our staff is paramount, so customers should be aware that there may be some disruption to normal services, i.e. it may take us longer to respond to areas affected by the severe weather.

General advice:

• The most up-to-date information on areas experiencing disruption will be found on our website www.niwater.com.  This includes a full postcode search facility for customers. 
• The Customer Relations Centre is available to customers on a 24 hours a day / 365 days a year through Waterline 03457 440088.
• Detailed information on keeping safe and useful contact numbers is available on the nidirect.gov.uk website. 

During a thaw period:

This will be the busiest time for NI Water with the potential for bursts on customer properties to increase demand on our assets.

There are number of things customers can do to help:

•  If you are out of water, first check with your neighbours.  If they HAVE water, it is likely that the problem is with your internal pipework.  Call a plumber to have the problem fixed. 
• If your neighbours DO NOT HAVE WATER, NI Water has a postcode search on www.niwater.com where you can check if there is something happening in your area.   
• You are our eyes and ears – if you spot a leak or a burst pipe, don’t assume we know about it, we depend on the public to alert us to leaks.  Please call Leakline on 0800 282011 so we can fix the burst as soon as possible. 
• Wrap up pipes and water tanks with lagging – high street DIY stores have everything you need.