Irish Water Working To Repair Burst Water Mains In Westmeath

Thursday, 22 July 2021 14:21

Crews have been working since Tuesday to restore service.

Irish Water customers in Westmeath are experiencing disruption to supply due to a number of burst water mains.

Crews have been working since Tuesday to restore service to those in the Ballynacarrigy, Moyvore, Ballymore, Moyvoughley, Moate, Kilgawny, and Rathconrath areas.

Four major repairs were carried out on Tuesday and Wednesday in the same area. It is anticipated today's repair will be completed by 6.30pm today and water supply should be restored to all customers up to three hours of the repair being completed.

Irish Water has provided alternative water supplies at Moate Community School, Ballymore Church and Moyvore National School and every effort is made to ensure that the alternative drinking water supply provided, including the tanker/bowser, and dispensing tap, are adequately disinfected. However as it is not practical to provide sterilised containers for the public to transport drinking water from the tanker to their homes, we cannot guarantee that any containers used by the public do not negatively impact or contaminate the drinking water. Therefore, as a precautionary measure, it is recommended that any members of the public who obtain water from a tanker or bowser boil the water before drinking or washing of salads or vegetable to be eaten raw. Customers are reminded to use their own containers when taking water from the tankers.

Speaking about the repair works, John Gavin, Regional Lead with Irish Water said: “The repairs are being conducted as quickly and as safely as possible to minimise disruption for customers in Ballynacarrigy, Moyvore, Ballymore, Moyvoughley, Moate and Kilgawny, Rathconrath and restore water for impacted customers. We understand the inconvenience unplanned outages can have on customers and we appreciate your patience as we work to return the water supply to homes and businesses as quickly as possible.

“The repair works are complex and difficult due to the size and nature of the watermains, the ground conditions and their locations under the public road. The location of the series of bursts close to the water treatment plant has resulted in disruptions to a large number of customers over a wide geographical area.”

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Irish Water receive direct communications from us for planned and unplanned outages lasting more than four hours.

Irish Water customer care team is available to help 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and customers can also contact Irish Water on Twitter @IWCare with any queries.

Irish Water continues to work at this time with our local authority partners, contractors and others to safeguard the health and well-being of staff and the public and to ensure the continuity of drinking water and wastewater services.