PROBLEMS WITH water supplies in Northern Ireland are at an all-time high because of burst pipes and running taps, Northern Ireland Water said yesterday.
The water provider said due to the significant number of weather-related bursts in private properties, the supply network was experiencing unprecedented demand.
Omagh and Dungannon, Co Tyrone, as well as Ballymoney, Co Antrim, and Claudy, Limavady and Dungiven, Co Derry, were among the areas hardest hit.
All keyholders were urged to check their premises for leaks and bursts and to take immediate action to repair them. A running tap can lose up to 3,000 gallons of water a day.
A major incident team has been set up in NI Water’s head office to co-ordinate response teams, and work is ongoing to find and repair burst water mains.
Emergency services managers have been criticised for their response to the sub-zero temperatures which have left so many properties flooded, and snow-covered minor roads in a dangerous state.
East Derry SDLP MLA John Dallat said questions had to be asked about how government departments implement emergency plans in the winter months.
He said: “Very few parts of the North have escaped the big freeze that has hit Ireland over the past week. Many businesses are opening after Christmas to find their water supplies cut off . . . it would appear that whatever system is meant to be in place has once again failed everyone.
“The system, if you could call it that, didn’t meet the most basic requirements for people to get around. From day one there were ominous signs that we were heading for trouble.”