Valencia West residents pleading for water

Residents of Valencia West say they are on the verge of protesting as they have not had water for six to eight weeks, despite being in the centre of three water sources.

Gwendolyn Charles, who ran as an independent councillor for the area, spoke to Newsday on Saturday.

“We understand there’s a shortfall of water due to the ongoing dry conditions but we are not getting water as we should. The Hollis Reservoir supplies Arouca and San Juan, North Oropouche supplies parts of Sangre Grande, and the Aripo Reservoir supplies parts of Valencia but we here in the heart of Valencia are not getting water. Some of the areas affected are St Pedro, Mt Carmel, Johnson Street, Morah Avenue Extension, and parts of Orchid Drive.

“Up to now we’re calling, you call WASA and have to wait or they hanging up, and we’re not getting any positive feedback as to why we’re in the situation we’re in.”

Charles said the corporation would normally have installed community water tanks but this had not been done.

“Putting up tanks for water in different places where people could access them when they were unable to get water for multiple days would have solved the problem as we would be able to get drinking water, water to wash clothes, etc.

“I made a call about tanks on Saturday and was told the meeting concerning the distribution of tanks to communities hadn’t come up yet. When are they going to do that? When you stay long in finalising dates, people are suffering. It’s not fair, we have people going to school, to work, they need their clothes washed, they need water.”

She said the residents were aware that areas supplied by the Hollis Reservoir were on a schedule but their areas were not listed on the schedule.

“If we knew what rotation we were on, we would be able to full our tanks, wash clothes, collect water in buckets and barrels, because we would know when we were getting and not getting water.”

Charles also asked whether they would get a rebate on their bills since they had not gotten water for two months, as the bills were still being received.

She said the residents were on the verge of protest but she had asked them to hold on.

“I wouldn’t say it’s wrong if they protest because WASA not saying anything is a disrespect to us and other places are getting the information and updated, and we’re in the heart of Valencia but not getting any kind of feedback. The lack of knowledge is terrible and it’s uncalled for. We need some kind of answers about why Valencia people not getting water for so long.”

WASA corporate communications manager Daniel Plenty said the company was having challenges with reduced production at the Hollis Reservoir due to lack of rainfall.

“The authority is aware of the situation, which stems from below-normal levels at the Hollis Reservoir and Quare Station, caused by a lack of rainfall in the Hollis catchment in the past months, as advised on October 7.

“The authority is pursuing several strategies to improve the situation, including adjusting schedules, integrating supplies from other sources and increased water trucking, among others. We will liaise with our operations team on the matter.”

On October 7, WASA issued a release saying that the Hollis Reservoir was producing 5.7 million gallons per day, but would normally be producing 8.4 million gallons per day. It said areas supplied by the reservoir would be put on a rotating schedule for water supply.