Sophia and Kaneville to get water supply upgrade -GWI

Guyana Water Inc. (GWI) says that pipelines are being installed in Sophia B Field to establish a network that will serve residents and within 14 days it is expected that the Sophia No. 1 well will be activated and then the network, especially in C, D, and F Fields will be assessed and upgraded.

And at Kaneville, East Bank Demerara, GWI is reassessing the damage to the network before inviting contractors to submit quotations for its upgrade, the GWI stated in a release.

A contract awarded by the Central Housing and Planning Authority last year for the construction of roads in Kaneville had severely affected the water distribution network by causing destruction to parts of the system, the release said. A decision was taken that the contractor would have replaced all damaged pipes but this was only done partially.

Meanwhile in June this year GWI awarded a contract for the repair and upgrade of service connections, but this effort was unsuccessful because of the considerable illegal GPL connections placed in the roadway by residents.

The release noted that one of the contractor’s staff suffered an electric shock and the contractor subsequently refused to continue any further works.

During an assessment it was determined that 180 service connections and three sections of the network needed upgrading.

Meantime, GWI had organized the distribution of water to residents using black tanks but this was disrupted by residents, according to the release.

GWI said that the present situation would require a significant amount of capital investment as most of the pipes and services may need to be replaced.

Residents of Kaneville recently complained bitterly on CNS Channel Six about their water plight.