Big swelter a problem for water supply
PEOPLE are drinking more water to keep hydrated through the Far North heatwave, but local governments are worried the water supply won’t be able to keep up.
Queensland Ambulance acting Assistant Commissioner Cairns and Hinterland network Greg Thiedecke said residents should avoid caffeinated drinks and stick to water.
“It’s important for people to maintain their hydration, so drinking lots of fluids,” he said.
The heatwave has caused Cassowary Coast Regional Council to tighten the nozzle on level 3 water restrictions put in place last week.
Mayor John Kremastos said water was becoming more valuable than gold.
“Come on people, this is outrageous – residents in Brisbane use on average 150 litres per person per day and you are using more than 700 litres per person per day,” he said.
“Our supply levels are depleting rapidly and we need to take some drastic measures to reduce our consumption levels now.”
Under the new restrictions, sprinklers, micro-spray and drip water systems are banned and handheld trigger nozzle hoses can only be used between 6am and 8am and 6pm and 8pm for odd number houses on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and even number houses on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
Cairns is also moving toward heavier restrictions, with councillors discussing the possibility of bumping up to level 2 at Wednesday’s council meeting. Yesterday, Copperlode Dam fell to 72 per cent of capacity.
Swiss tourist Karen Koenigsfeld said she had been to Cairns many times and never felt heat like this.
“I know Cairns, I knew it would be hot here but I’ve never seen it get over 40 degrees like this,” she said.
“During the day I drink heaps of water, do my best to stay in the shade, go for a swim and just take everything a little bit slower.”
Temperatures have started to drop off, with the highest temperature getting up to 38.8 at Cairns Airport at 10.54am yesterday. The weather bureau is forecasting tops of 36 today and 35 from Saturday through to Tuesday.
From Saturday onwards, the bureau’s three-day heatwave forecast for Cairns is expected to drop from a severe to a low intensity heatwave.
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