POINTE-CLAIRE – As Montrealers awoke to cold temperatures, residents that live on Highgate Ave. in Pointe-Claire were hit with a huge problem.
Temporary pipes that the City of Pointe-Claire set up in some neighbourhoods froze overnight, leaving some families without any water.
Rosie Saab, who lives with a man who is handicapped, told Global News water is essential.
“We don’t know what’s happening,” she said.
“I have to wash him, he’s handicapped – I can’t do without water.”
In January, people on Highgate Ave. became concerned their water had been turning to brown, on and off, for months.
READ MORE: Concerns flow from brown water in Pointe-Claire
After some of them brought the issue to the Mayor’s attention in February, the city agreed to fix the problem.
Saab said it was done at the wrong time and the city waited all summer only to do the work in the winter.
Residents said the city should have warned them to keep their faucets running in order to avoid frozen pipes.
“The city did not notify us to leave the water,” she said.
“If you leave it I guess a little bit, it will not freeze – but they didn’t tell us such thing.”
READ MORE: Would you drink this? Brown water battle in Pointe-Claire
“They were not advised,” Pointe-Claire Mayor Morris Trudeau told Global News.
“It was 22 degrees here last week and everyone was outside with their shorts, but now all the residents in all the areas where this type of work is happening, we will be advising them to keep a very, very little stream of water running.”
He said he understands the frustration, but the work has to be done.
“There are inconveniences when there is construction, but it should be settled quite rapidly,” he said.
Most households have since got their water back; they just hope it doesn’t happen again.
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