Emergency repair on a burst watermain in Antrim
23 July 2021 13:23
NI Water is completing an emergency repair to a burst watermain in Antrim which has resulted in a temporary loss of water supply and intermittent supply to properties in Antrim and surrounding areas. This burst is being exacerbated by the high demand we are currently experiencing and we are appealing to customers to please only use the water they need.
Des Nevin, Director of Customer Operations, comments:
“We would like to thank those members of the public who have cut back on their demand. Unfortunately, this isn’t a widespread behaviour and province wide demand has remained unsustainably high. Please act now to save water.
“Avoid wasting water where it is not necessary but please stay hydrated. We need to ensure everyone has sufficient water for hygiene and daily use.
“We understand that the public are struggling in the current heatwave and this is making people turn on their sprinklers and fill pools to stay cool however, are asking customers to roll up their hoses and disconnect them for the next few days.
“A hose uses more water in one hour than the average family uses in a whole day and filling a 12ft swimming pool uses the same amount of water 500 people use for daily handwashing.
“It is our last resort to introduce a hosepipe ban but ultimately, that choice lays in the hands of our customers, if everyone simply uses the water they actually need, there will be plenty for everyone.
“Cleaning water is a long and energy intensive process and we are working as quickly as possible to get it to taps but we cannot go any faster, we need the public to do their bit to help.
“We want everyone to enjoy their home and garden, we just need people to think about how they use their water and if what they are doing is essential.”
“NI Water has a tried and tested incident response team with a wealth of knowledge and experience. Customers can be reassured that they are working round the clock in order to bring this issue under control.
Updates can be found via https://www.niwater.com/current-service-updates/