Chatham-Kent’s water restrictions, which were supposed to be over by Friday evening, have only gotten worse.
Municipal officials on Saturday morning announced enhanced water use restrictions for Chatham, Grande Pointe, Pain Court, Dover Centre, Mitchell’s Bay, Dresden, Tupperville, Eberts, Jeannette’s Creek, Thamesville and Kent Bridge.
People are now being asked to avoid showering and bathing and doing laundry during this restriction period, on top of not watering the grass, filling pools and hot tubs, or washing their vehicles.
We still have municipal approval to flush the toilet, however, as well as to drink water and brush our teeth.
Work began on Monday to repair the main pipe that feeds water into the Chatham Water Treatment Plant. Chatham-Kent officials said the repairs have been made, but the water system is experiencing “significant supply challenges” in the wake of those repairs,
The water that we can take from the tap is safe to drink, officials said.
“Storage reservoirs are approaching critically low levels and the system is at risk of losing pressure. Reducing consumption immediately will help stabilize the system and provide the time necessary for full water production to resume,” the municipality said in a press release.
Industrial, commercial and institutional water customers are also being contacted directly and asked to significantly restrict their water consumption.
Some large water users are shutting down or rescheduling production and other activities that require significant volumes of water, according to the municipality.
Businesses whose operations involve significant water consumption, including car washes, dog washes and laundromats, are being asked to voluntarily close for the day. Restaurants and other significant commercial water users are also being asked to reduce or cease water-intensive operations wherever possible to help preserve the municipal water supply and maintain system pressure.
The municipality is also shutting down municipal splash pads and pools, and other operations that require significant water use.
All restrictions are intended to be a short-term measure while the water system stabilizes in the wake of the pipe repairs.
If residents don’t collectively act to conserve water, municipal officials said there could be a complete loss of water pressure.
“The municipality will continue to monitor the system closely and will provide updates as additional information becomes available. Residents should continue following the emergency severe water restrictions until the municipality advises that they have been lifted,” Chatham-Kent officials said.
