NP’s water back on tap but keep boiling it
All water use restrictions have been removed and schools are heading back with New Plymouth’s state of emergency now over.
While the boil water order remains, all restrictions on water put in place before a tree smashed a water supply pipe, have been cancelled to increase the amount of water flowing through the system.
This will help flush out sediment and return the system to normal, the New Plymouth District Council said in a press release on Sunday afternoon.
The state of emergency in New Plymouth District was lifted on Sunday morning and all properties should now have running water once again.
Five mobile water testing crews are taking samples from 100 fire hydrant locations to make sure there is enough chlorine in the water.
Some of the testing will also be for the presence of E.coli in the water. These tests will take four days to get results.
After an enforced holiday last week due to water shortages New Plymouth district schools and kindergartens will be open for business today.
To help out 85,000 bottles of water will be delivered to schools this week, with the delivery being co-ordinated by Taranaki Civil Defence with support from volunteers and other agencies.
Five days ago, on Tuesday afternoon, a tree blown over by excyclone Gita smashed into a water supply pipe and effectively cut supply to 25 per cent of the district.
A state of emergency was declared at 8pm that night and severe water restrictions and a boil water notice were issued on Wednesday. Thousands of home were without water for two days or more.
New Plymouth Mayor Neil Holdom announced Sunday morning the state of emergency was over but there was still a lot of work to be done to restore full services to the region and the boil water notice was still in effect.
He said the storm showcased the resilience of the Taranaki region.
Holdom paid tribute to the volunteers, emergency response groups and organisations who helped during the crisis. spread the importance of the boil water notice.
‘‘Finally – thank you to the people of this city and the region,’’ he said.
‘‘This has not been an easy time but you have looked after each other, you have been patient and you have been resilient.’’