‘Water may be curtailed for months’

WATER supplies in some parts of the country may not be back to normal forseveral months, authorities warned last night.

Dublin City Council has warned it could take as long as three to four months for the city’s water supply to return to its normal level and for broken and leaking pipes to be replaced.

Similar problems are also affecting Cork, Kilkenny, Limerick, Clare andWaterford.

Transport Minister Noel Dempsey, who chaired the Government’s emergencycommittee, warned that water shortages and supply were the most serious issues after the big freeze, and the increasing thaw.

“It remains the critical issue and in a variety of different places,” he said.

“The reservoirs continue to be depleted and again we are renewing our appeals for people to use water very, very sparingly, to conserve it and to look for leaks in property.”

Dublin City Council said it has been consistently warning it was unable to estimate how long it would take to have supply fully restored.

But Lord Mayor Emer Costello accepted more could be done to keep householders informed.

“Given the ongoing water supply problems I have requested the city manager to improve communications to the general public particularly in the most effected areas of the city,” she said. Officials have told the emergency committee a thaw would have to replenish lakes, reservoirs and rivers before they could properly assess the situation.

It is understood leaks in supply pipes and homes and are compounding problems of dwindling reservoirs caused by people leaving taps running.

Authorities in the capital repeated warnings to industrial water users such as Guinness, Batchelors and Bewley’s as millions of litres were being lost down sinks in homes and through broken pipes.

Severe restrictions were being imposed on homes from 7pm last night to 7am this morning.

Elsewhere, water was being switched off in the Shannon area from 8pm to 8am while parts of Clare including Sixmilebridge, Lahinch, Liscannor, Lisdoonvarna, Doolin and Newmarket on Fergus had supplies turned off. Clare County Council said demand for water was up 20%.

Cork has rationed supplies with the worst affected areas Bantry, Skibbereen, Baltimore, Dunmanway, Mallow and Millstreet.

In Limerick City households were warned supplies may be intermittent.