Water misery for thousands of households

Households throughout Meath suffered severe hardship over Christmas as frozen pipes left thousands of homes without water. The result has been an outpouring of fury against Meath County Council, as frustrated members of the public couldn't even make contact with the council's emergency helpline. The record-breaking icy temperatures resulted in thousands of households throughout the county being left without water over the Christmas period, causing extreme hardship for many elderly and disabled people. While many households were without a water supply for up to two weeks, many others woke up on Christmas morning to find their mains water frozen on a day when no shops were open for them to buy bottled water. Adding to the misery was the fact that many were unable to contact Meath County Council's emergency number. Cllr Tommy Reilly, who had no water himself, said he was inundated with complaints from members of the public who were left without water. “I had people with me, crying. It was bad enough for any family to be left without water, but for elderly people who would find it difficult carrying water and for parents of young children and disabled people, it caused huge hardship,†he said. “It was pitiful to see these people struggling over the festive period, unable to flush toilets, shower or wash dishes,†he said. Cllr Reilly pointed out that there were people in Woodlands in Navan who had no water for over two weeks. He said he was angry at the fact that many of those enduring this hardship were unable to make contact with the council. “In a situation like this, there should be a local number for them to contact,†he said. Cllr Jim Holloway said he, too, had been inundated with calls from the public. “It is clear there were many factors at play, including work not being done properly and the pipes not being laid low enough in housing estates,†he said. He expressed dissapointment that Navan's second reservoir was not in operation and pointed out that some people had left taps running in a bid to prevent frozen pipes. He complimented the council staff who had been out in all kinds of weather doing what they could to help. Cllr Brian Curran said a lot of families and businesses were left without water, some for over two weeks. He said both the older and newer parts of Kells had been affected but there had been a great community spirit in evidence as neighbours delivered water to households that were left with none. Residents in Ballivor were particularly angry at the lack of water and said that, over the past three Christmasses, they have had no water on Christmas Day. Local resident Keith Smith said it wasn't just a problem with frozen pipes as the people of Ballivor suffered from severe water shortages even when the weather is good. “We have had no water since 18th December and we have had no heating because of it. This is our third Christmas now with no water and we have had to go to Trim to get water just to flush our toilets,†he said. He said it had been very difficult over Christmas as he has five children and one grandchild. “There are eight of us living in the one house, so you can imagine how difficult it was,†he added. A spokesperson for Meath County Council said there were technical difficulties with its emergency line on Christmas Eve, which had been ironed out, but the situation was exacerbated again over the holiday break because of the sheer volume of calls the council was receiving. Because of this, the council had taken a decision to open its switchboard this morning (Wednesday) from 9.30am to 5pm on (046) 909 7000, ahead of staff's return to work. The emergency contact number is 1890 445 335. She said that demand for water was continuing to increase across the county due to leaks as a result of cracked or burst pipes. “Low pressure and interruptions to supply may be experienced in a number of areas, but particularly in Ashbourne, Dunshaughlin, Ratoath, Dunboyne. The council is now appealing to people to check for leaks, particularly in unoccupied business units, vacant properties agricultural buildings and field troughs. “The priority now is to protect water supplies and Meath County Council's leak detection units are working to identify leaks as required,†she said. The council are also advising people who have pipework problems to contact a plumber and arrange to have leaks repaired as soon as possible. A call for a complete review of Meath County Council operations in dealing with water shortages over the Christmas period has been made by Cllr Joe Reilly. He said there had been an unprecedented period of severe weather conditions and he had been inudated with calls from people in serious circumstances - no water, no heat, burst pipes, no shower or toilet facilities for children “I know that the staff of Meath County Council and Navan Town Council were working hard in difficult conditions to try and keep the systems in operation. I thank them for that. But a number of serious questions have arisen over the period. These include the working of the emergency telephine numbers and the many complaints about calls not been answered or left waiting, the lack of up-to-date information on the Meath County Council website about what was happening; the lack of water tankers for areas without water for four or five days, and the non-staffing of Meath County Council offices as a point of contact. “In other cases, questions have to be asked of the construction industry with regards the depth of the water pipes in the ground and if they are in line with laid down regulations. In some cases, pipes are only four or five inches into the ground. “After any emergency, a review should take place so as to learn the lessons required. I am asking Meath County Council to review their operations and to publish the results of a review. This is important if people are to have confidence in a major piece of important and necessary infrastructure,†he said. Weather conditions as experienced last year and this year appear to indicate that severe weather conditions are now a feature of life. We then have to prepare properly for them and have a number of contingency plans in place, the Sinn Fein councillor added. A resident at Athlumney Hall, Johnstown, Navan, reported on 26th December that most of the residents had had no water supply for more than a week. An emergency tanker was urgently supplied. Over the past few days, residents had been trying to contact the council's emergency number but got no reply, he said. A resident at Limekiln Estate, Navan, told Cllr Reilly that being without water for five days was “just unacceptableâ€. He said that other counties had set up water stations but not Meath. He said the lack of information on the council website was “appalling†and the emergency line was “non-existent†and “obviously off the hookâ€. A resident of Woodlands estate, Navan, had no water supply and had frozen pipes outside the house. He, too, complained about the lack of water tankers and the “poor†information on the council website. The lack of quick action from Meath County Council concerning the water shortage situation also has been sharply criticised by Trim councillor Ray Butler, who said yesterday (Tuesday) that the emergency response had been completely inadequate. There have been widespread water cut-offs across Kildalkey, Ballivor, Trim and Athboy, some going back to 21st December, and the response from Meath County Council has been scandalously slow, he said. “We all appreciate that we are in an unprecedented weather situation,†the Trim councillor added. “But there should be a proper plan in place to deal with such situations.†People calling the emergency number, including himself, were failing to get through or get any response from it. He said that in situations where the council was the main provider of a service, it is its obligation to ensure that the service is adequately catered for, and that back-up water tankers should be provided. “This is especially true in situations where businesses which are paying rates are trying to survive,†he said. “The council will then turn around and present huge water rate bills.†Coming so soon after the debacle on some of the county's snow-covered roads, the problems with water are adding to people's lack of confidence in Meath County Council to respond to a crisis, Cllr Butler went on. He said he had received numerous complaints and spent five hours on Monday trying to help people with issues regarding water shortages.