Residents on the East Bank of Demerara are anxiously awaiting the return of sustained potable water supply by the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) after the collapse of the well servicing their area.
In a release yesterday, GWI stated that it has commenced drilling for a new well at Diamond, East Bank Demerara, following the collapse of an old one in May that served the community. The utility’s engineers, it stated, tried unsuccessfully to revive the old well making it necessary to begin the drilling of a new well in order to restore normal water supply to residents as soon as possible. The drilling is being carried out by a GWI in-house team who are working around-the-clock to complete the project within the stipulated three-month timeframe. The well is being dug to a depth of 800 feet and is expected to provide a water supply at a rate of approximately 220 cubic feet per minute.
It also stated that Diamond residents received a visit yesterday by Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal, and GWI Chief Executive Officer, Shaik Baksh, both of whom assured them that the utility was “doing everything in its power to expedite the completion of the new well.”
Croal told the gathering, “I want to assure Diamond residents that work has begun on drilling the new well, and our team is working around the clock to complete this project.” Baksh assured them that GWI understood the hardship they were facing and apologised for the inconvenience caused by the situation. He asked the residents to be patient, explaining that extensive efforts are underway to enhance the water infrastructure on the East Bank, including the Diamond area.
According to the release, residents currently receive water between 04.30 to 09.00 hours in the morning and 14.30 to 21.00 hours in the afternoon. However, it noted that once the new well is completed, residents can anticipate “significant” improvement in the water pressure and a “more reliable” supply.
The Government of Guyana has allocated “significant funds” to improve water access and quality on the East Bank of Demerara and throughout the country, the release added.
Meanwhile, the Sunday Stabroek spoke to several residents to get their view on how the reduced supply of potable water has affected them.
Latchman Rambharose said that the timing is frustrating because the water “barely comes” and sometimes it comes at a slow pace. She noted that she has one ‘black’ (water) tank and to fill it is challenging. If the tank doesn’t fill in morning, she has to wait after 2:30 pm for the water to flow again.
Ameer Karim said that the change in schedule affects him a lot since during the week he works and on Sunday, which normally would be his rest day, he has to get up early to use the water to get his daily chores done which poses its own hardship since the water barely comes in the morning, “it drips”. He said that his water bill has increased since the GWI team started to build the new well. It has gone from $2,000 to $3000. And as far as he is concerned, that this is ridiculous as he uses less water since most of the time the water drips.
Faroul Khan complained that it has been difficult dealing with the drop in water pressure ever since the schedule changed to accommodate the new well. He added that the water cuts off directly at 9 am and does not return until 4:30pm or sometimes as late as 6 pm. In addition, he doesn’t have a black tank, he has two small blue barrels, instead and that can’t do during the day for his family. He added that when he really needs the water, his family can’t get it, instead they have to sit down and wait until it comes back on.
Abdool Khan said that the change in schedule is not affecting him since he has black tanks downstairs and upstairs at his property. He said that in the morning he would fill them up, so during the day when the water is not flowing from the pipes, he has water to supply the home.
Desiree Ramdai complained that the water barely comes in the morning and whatever amount of water is in the black tank, she works with that. She noted that during the day when she has finished washing dishes, the tank would be empty and she has to wait until 4:30pm to get the proper flow of water to refill her tank. She noted that sometimes the rain doesn’t fall during the day and her family would mostly depend on the pipe water to fill the tank. She too is perplexed by the increase in her water bill which has gone from $1,600 to $1,700 this month since the water barely comes most of the times. She questions what her water bill will look like this month.
Basdeo Ramdeen said that the change in time is not affecting him since he has two black tanks and in the mornings, he would fill the tanks and during the day he wouldn’t have a cause to use it since he works mostly in the day.
