WATER MAIN BREAKS CONTINUE AT A HIGH RATE
Not unlike the rest of the province, Saskatoon continues to respond to reports of water service issues in areas all across the city. While repair crews are repairing locations quickly, the backlog is slowly growing. The target for having repairs complete and the water back on from when it is turned off is 48 hours, in some cases this will be longer, even up to four days. This is a challenging time of year for contract support; however, we continue to engage outside support when possible.
Temporary Water
We empathize with affected residents and businesses who are going days without running water and we are doing as much as possible to try and provide temporary drinking water. Water trailers will continue to be provided to affected areas, but it can take longer than the normal eight hours to be available. Bottled water was delivered to almost every home that didn’t have a water trailer on Wednesday. We will continue to try and offer bottled water if a water trailer is not available, but over the weekend, it may take longer.
We are pleased to be able to offer free admission for affected residents to use the shower facilities at the City Leisure Centre closest to them. They will require identification or a recent utility bill showing their address, which will be compared to list of homes affected by a water main break.
Weather contributes to water main breaks
This weekend, temperatures are expected to rise, which is great for most of us, but could mean water main breaks will continue to occur at this rate or higher. What is different this year is that the ground frost level has reached as deep as the underground pipes. Each time the temperature changes, the frost level can move, putting pressure on the pipes causing them to shift. If there is already a weak spot in the pipe, caused by age, corrosion or previous work, it can break.
Be prepared
Every home should have an emergency preparedness plan for any time of the year, not just for water outage. Residents in areas where water main breaks have occurred in the past few years, including neighbourhoods adjacent to current water main breaks, are encouraged to be prepared by having extra drinking water stored as a precaution. The recommended supply of water to have on hand for a 72-hour period is 3.8 litres (one gallon) per person or pet per day. Emergency preparedness information is available on the Government of Canada’s public safety website getprepared.gc.ca, including further recommendations for an emergency water supply.
Frozen water connections
Home owners are also reporting frozen water connections, where there is a blockage on the water connection from the City’s water main to the private home. If your water does not turn on, it may be an issue with the private portion of your water connection. If there is an issue on the City portion, we will come out and use specialized equipment to defrost the line from your home. To help prevent this, we recommend making sure the pipes are well-insulated, including the portion at the outside walls of your home.
Current water main breaks
All available staff and contractors are focused on isolating the location of the breaks, preparing the sites for excavation (identifying any underground utilities or hazards), and repairing the pipes. Different expertise is required at each stage of repairing a water main break, so even if no workers are present, each location is scheduled and will be repaired as quickly as possible.
Water service is currently off at the following locations:
- North of 1540 Avenue G N/1537 Ave F N on 37th St West
- 2130 Pembina Drive
- 929 Macklem Drive
- 1044 East Centre
- 1705 Quebec Avenue
- 11125 Coy Avenue
- 52 Athabasca Crescent
- 2309 McKinnon Street
- 13 Laurentian Drive
- 51/53 Yale Crescent
- 2416 Underwood Avenue
- 138 Dalhousie Crescent
Current water main breaks are available on the City’s website. This list will be updated daily, including over the weekend.
We want to thank everyone for their cooperation and understanding. If you are affected by a water outage and have any questions, or to report a water main break, please call the Public Works customer service call centre 24/7 at 306-975-2476. Find out more about the Precautionary Drinking Water Advisory that is in effect when the water is turned back on.
For more City of Saskatoon Public Service Announcements, News Releases, Traffic Detours and Service Alerts, visit www.saskatoon.ca or connect with the City of Saskatoon on Twitter and Facebook from the links at saskatoon.ca.