Water supply resumes at Wisroc but quality problems arise

The water supply to Wisroc, One Mile, Half Mile, Blueberry Hill and Canvas City, Wismar, Linden was restored after a disruption on Monday afternoon but residents are complaining about the quality.

The water supply to communities was disrupted on Sunday due to a main that was damaged due to soil erosion at Duck Pond at Wisroc. On Monday, Guyana Water Incorporated advised customers served by the Wisroc Water Treatment Plant of the disruption, due to a main being damaged by massive soil erosion in the Wisroc area. GWI also said its teams were working to restore normal service.

Residents of the affected areas yesterday said that while the water started flowing again on Monday afternoon, the water coming from their taps was discoloured with a significant amount of sediments.

“Sometimes when it rains, we wouldn’t get clear water but this is not the case. No rain and it’s a mess,“ said a Wisroc resident.

Another from Block 22 said that she added chlorinating chemicals to her water when she realized the state of the supply on Monday evening. “That didn’t make no sense because the water barely clearing up and the sediments just keep floating. Something is definitely not right,“ said Patricia Thompson.

GWI spokesman Timothy Austin yesterday said that the company’s teams were still working around the clock to repair the main. He noted that the main is pivotal to the operations and was severely damaged by soil erosion that was quite significant.

The areas affected by the current situation accounts for approximately half of the Wismar population. Other areas of Wismar are serviced by the Burnham Drive and West Watooka water treatment plants.

The Wisroc plant is located miles behind Wisroc in adverse terrain and accessing the area is currently challenging because of the bad roads.