BAD weather has complicated efforts to restore water supply to some 120,000 consumers in Penang as divers were unable to resume efforts to clamp a leaked hole inside the faulty 1,300mm riverbed pipeline.
The top part of the hole was clamped earlier today but the bottom, which is more challenging due to the river conditions, was expected to be done by 4 pm today, but as of 5 pm, the job could not commence due to heavy rain and winds.
Divers are now waiting for the rain to subside before they dive back into Sungai Perai off the Ampang Jajar Bridge in Butterworth to resume work.
This was conveyed by the Penang Water Supply Corporation Sdn Bhd (PBAPP) in a social media posting.
As of now, 1,200 accounts in mostly the Balik Pulau district and parts of George Town neighbourhoods like Island Park and Island Glades do not have piped water.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who visited the site for the tenth time earlier today, said that 84% of the 1,200 accounts affected, can receive normal supply by 8 am tomorrow if the leakage has been plugged.
Meanwhile, the pipe diversion project to connect the main supply link from the Sungai Dua Water Treatment Plant to the pipelines at Ampang Jajar, is now 70 per cent completed, said Chow.
He expects the diversion pipeline to be ready by this Saturday, while normal water supply is expected to fully resume by next week.
The diversion pipeline would replace the current riverbed pipeline, which has constantly raptured despite various repairs.
Penang has been besieged by water disruptions for the better part of the last six weeks, earning the ire of the consumers.
If the disruption continues till Sunday, it will be the longest period that residents here were cut off from access to piped water.
Chow appealed for patience, as PBAPP was working around the clock to remedy the situation. - The Vibes, January 25, 2024.
