New water supply helps long-suffering Longwood residents

Long-running problems being experienced by householders in a number of estates in Longwood due to poor water pressure are set to be resolved after a new water supply was commissioned in the area last week. Increased demand on the existing supply meant that residents of Ribbontail Way, Edgeworth Court and Oakleigh have had ongoing problems with poor water pressure and were often left without water in their tanks at weekends. The problem was at its worst during dry spells and at weekends when consumer demand increased, resulting in the water pressure being so low that attic tanks would not fill. Trim area administrator Brian Murphy confirmed that the new well was connected last Thursday and said that while there may be some "teething problems," the water pressure issues should be resolved within the next fortnight. He said the new supply would augment the existing one and that residents of Ribbontail Way, Edgeworth Court and Oakleigh would see a major improvement. Up to this, while there was water in the mains, it would not fill tanks quickly enough in the attic, which affected the use of washing machines, showers and dishwashers. Local county councillor William Carey has welcomed news that the new supply has been commissioned and said he had been raising the matter for years. He said the council had thought there was enough water in the existing source to supply all the houses but that, in the last 18 months, the supply started giving trouble and they discovered the water table had dropped. Cllr Carey said the council had been looking for a new source for a couple of years and finally was able to tap into a new supply. "It was unfortunate what happened and, hopefully, this will serve people for many years to come. I felt sorry for the people. Hopefully, the long wait will prove worthwhile," he said. Ribbontail Way resident Ian Matthews has had long-running problems with poor water pressure and was without water in his tank throughout the Easter bank holiday weekend, because of the increased demand with people being off. Mr Matthews said the poor water pressure is a problem that affected their whole estate and that some people had put two tanks in their attic to combat the problem. Mr Matthews has lived in Ribbontail Way for 12 years and said the water pressure was never great but that as the area became more and more built up, they suffered because they are at the end of the line. He said the problem has been worse for the last six to eight months. The poor water pressure at weekends, in particular, meant that they could not use their washing machine or dishwasher and, at the last bank holiday weekend, Mr Matthews said the family had to go to his mother-in-law's house to take a shower. Following the connection of the new source last Thursday, Mr Matthews said he had noticed an improvement in the water pressure at the weekend and welcomed the works.