It will be late Thursday at the earliest before thousands of residents in six Saskatoon neighbourhoods find out if they no longer have to boil their drinking water.
A precautionary drinking water advisory (PDWA) was issued Monday for Arbor Creek, Erindale, Evergreen, Forest Grove, University Heights Suburban Centre and Willowgrove after a contractor damaged a primary 42 inch water main.
The damage depressurized the water distribution system to the affected neighbourhoods.
READ MORE: City asks people affected by DWA in Saskatoon to reach out to friends, family for water
The PDWA can not be lifted until two sets of tests confirm the water is safe for consumption. The second test results will not be available until late Thursday.
City officials say they have been providing updates to those affected by phone, email or text messages using NotifyNow, and say this will be the primary communication tool once the advisory is lifted.
“We encourage people in the six affected neighbourhoods to pay attention to our notifynow alerts or check the status of the water advisory regularly at saskatoon.ca,” said Trent Schmidt, the city’s acting director of public works.
“With Friday being Canada Day and a long weekend for many people, we are telling people now what they will need to do once they get the message.”
READ MORE: Thousands in Saskatoon under drinking water advisory
Once the PDWA is lifted, four steps need to be taken before tap water can be used normally:
- Run cold water faucets and drinking fountains for at least 1 minute before using the water;
- Drain and flush the ice-making system in your refrigerator;
- Run water softeners through a regeneration cycle; and
- Drain and refill hot water heaters set below 45°C (normal setting is 60°C).
Comments