AN OLD COLWYN councillor has criticised Dŵr Cymru (Welsh Water) after some residents were left without running water for up to 24 hours during the heatwave.
Cllr Cheryl Carlisle said the disruption had affected vulnerable residents, including nursing homes, and said Dŵr Cymru needed to answer questions over its handling of the shortage.
The Conwy County Council member also said the water board needed to invest in the area’s infrastructure in future.
Cllr Carlisle said: “Yet again our water supplies in Old Colwyn have been severely disrupted over the last few days, with some areas without any running water for up to 24 hours. Local nursing homes are without supplies, and given the current heatwave, it is a really concerning situation.
“We are being told that supplies are having to be switched off in some areas to meet demand in other areas, which is completely unacceptable for our most vulnerable residents. There has been no prior warning, which has considerably exacerbated the situation.
“I have been coordinating help with Conwy Council, trying to get information and help out to the residents of Old Colwyn, but have received no assistance from Dŵr Cymru as of Sunday afternoon.”
Cllr Carlisle said she believed the fire at Sychnant Pass was making the situation worse but felt sympathy for the residents involved.
“This water supply incident has hit our most vulnerable residents yet again, and the lack of contingency planning and any information has been shameful,” said Cllr Carlisle.
“Dŵr Cymru have clearly learned nothing from the water crisis of 18 months ago when the burst occurred in the Conwy Valley system, despite all their assurances at the time that there would be proper emergency plans put in place for any future similar events. There has been no delivery of bottled water, no water stations set up, and no contact for those on the Priority Customer database.”
Cllr Carlisle said the area’s reliance on ageing infrastructure was a major concern.
“Dŵr Cymru’s handling of yet another water crisis in Old Colwyn and surrounding area is woeful and needs addressing as a matter of urgency,” she said.
“Our area relies on Victorian reservoirs, the main one being on Mynydd Marian in Llysfaen, and this can clearly no longer cope with the demand for our ever-growing population.
“Their business plan does not apparently include the £2 million plus that is needed to upgrade the supply, piping, and sewage network for the Llysfaen Road system that serves a wider area. This needs an urgent rethink, and I will be asking Conwy Council to raise this with Dŵr Cymru’s CEO as a matter of urgency.”
A spokesman for Dŵr Cymru said: “Over the weekend we saw a surge in the demand for water due to the warm weather.
“Some of our customers in Old Colwyn and the surrounding areas will have suffered from an intermittent supply or low pressures due to the demand on the local network.
“We apologise to our customers for the inconvenience caused. Since Thursday we have seen demand across our operating network exceed 1,000 megalitres per day, which is a rise of over 17%. The usual demand is around 850 megalitres per day, but the company has seen demand consistently over 900 megalitres a day for three weeks.”
He added: “To help keep supplies flowing, hundreds of frontline colleagues are working around the clock, increasing water production, moving water around the network and fixing leaks as quickly as possible.”
