Dept monitoring supply to Telipok, Manggatal
Published on: Thursday, June 10, 2021
By: Sidney Skinner
.jpg "Dept monitoring supply to Telipok, Manggatal")
Seri Maju Sepanggar Ria occupants filling up water to carry up to their apartments.
THE Water Department is monitoring the supply to parts of Telipok and Manggatal, including Seri Maju Sepanggar Ria where the taps in some apartments have run dry for more than to a fortnight.A Department spokesman said treated water was being delivered to the apartments.
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“We have been periodically replenishing the static tanks inside the compound and the balancing tank for the property,” he said.
“There is still insufficient pressure in the distribution line for those on the upper floors to get a supply but, at least, the occupants can come down to manually get some water.”
Treated water being filled into the balancing tank at Taman Bukit Sepanggar.
He said the agency’s tankers, each with a 20, 000litre-capacity, had made two or three trips to the apartments on Monday alone.
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“The tanker trips were partly prompted by pleas from the management company about the prolonged water woes at the apartments.
“These deliveries are intended to supplement the water which comes through our distribution mains during that interval when a supply is rationed to the property.”
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He said the supply available through rationing, however, could only be obtained by those units on the ground floor.
The rationing exercise, which involved residential and commercial properties to the North of the State Capital, was implemented according to a schedule between 9pm-6am daily, according to him.
The spokesman said the Department was endeavouring to stabilise the supply to these areas after the murkiness of the river water recently disrupted activities at one of the two treatment plants servicing these areas.
“Telibong 1 was shutdown on Saturday and Sunday, for about eight hours each time, due to the high turbidity of the raw water channelled to the facility.
“The turbidity of the river water reached 4460 and 3885NTU on both days, well above 2000NTU – the maximum limit allowed for treatment.”
He said the plant only resumed uninterrupted operations from 5am on Monday.
Nevertheless, the duel shutdowns had caused a “gangguan bekalan air yang teruk (severe supply disruption)” which affected hundreds of consumers from Telipok to the Indah Permai area in Manggatal, according to him.
A hose extended from the water tanker to fill up the static tanks on the apartment grounds.
“It normally takes between two to three days for consumers to recover after a shutdown.
“But, because this occurred on two consecutive days, it may take up to a week for the supply to normalise in some places.”
He said this was especially so when it came to properties located at the end of the Department’s main distribution line, such as Taman Bukit Sepanggar.
“We tried to boost the water levels inside the balancing tank for the neighbourhood to ease the water woes here.
“Our personnel are keeping a close eye on the water situation at all the affected areas to try and minimise the inconvenience caused to our customers.”
APRIL, who shares her top floor apartment with her five nieces and nephews, said she was finding it difficult to get by.
“It is back-breaking to have to carry containers of water up four flights of stairs,” she said.
“Besides the physical strain, I have also incurred additional expenses to feed and keep the kids in clean clothes.”
She said she had not been able to cook, let alone do any laundry, because of the lack of a supply in her unit.
“I spend about RM30-50 each time I have to order takeaway food for all of us.
“This is on top of the hefty sum I have forked out to buy mineral water so that we can stay properly hydrated.”
April said she had not received a supply for almost 14 days.
“On the second day of the Harvest Festival break, a supply was available at around 1am. The taps were dry again by 5am.
“I spent those few hours cleaning my apartment, washing clothes, doing the dishes and filling up as many empty containers as I could find.
She said this was not the first time that she had gone without sleep in order to make the most of the tap water in her unit.
“I don’t know how much longer I can keep staying up till odd hours just to see if there is a supply. I am not a robot. I need a good rest too.
“I am so fed up of the Department’s excuses. I want these water problems to be resolved once and for all.”
April said Seri Maju Sepanggar Ria was made up of 11 apartment blocks, each of which was four storeys high.
“There are several blue water tanks on the grounds. But these reserves are not enough for everyone staying here to get by, especially if tap water is not available for weeks at a time.”
ALEX, who lives in Taman Bukit Sepanggar, was upset about his inability to reach the Department’s Care Line for the past two weeks.
“Despite getting through to this line, each of my calls again went unanswered,” he said.
“I settle my water charges in full whenever I receive a bill, so it is particularly disheartening that there is no one to take heed of the intermittent supply I have been receiving.”
He has been without sufficient tap water since the third week of May.
He lamented the weak pressure of the water coming from his taps.
“When a supply is available, it is not strong enough to reach the tank on the first floor of my home.
“The water trickles from the taps on the ground floor for a short period before vanishing for days on end.”
Alex said there were about 10,000 houses in Taman Bukit Sepanggar which was located several kilometres away from Manggatal.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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