Staff
As more and more water lines are reported frozen here, the town continues to urge the public to keep those taps running.
Operations and Facilities manager Doug Brown said that as of Monday afternoon, a total of 63 frozen service lines have been reported to Public Works.
“If you’ve had a frozen water line in the past, or if you see a thawing machine working across the street at your neighbour’s, run your line in your basement, at your nearest sink, at about a pencil width through the wintertime,” he told council Monday night.
“Basically, you’ll have to run that line until probably the third week in April to the first week in May,” added Brown, noting the town will announce when those property owners should stop “bleeding” their water lines.
Brown stressed that if people don’t do this, their water lines will freeze up.
If you go away for a weekend or more, keep your tap running so some water is going through the line.
This past weekend, five residents went away and their water lines froze.
Brown said the town is keeping track of who is having trouble with their water lines this winter so that next winter, they’ll be able to phone people and remind them.
He added that in 1994, more than 200 water services froze, but the town did not keep a good record of whose pipes were affected that winter.
Brown said Public Works will thaw the lines in the order that the calls come in.
“So if you want to get in the queue, phone right away,” he stressed.
The town has two thawing machines.
Other municipalities have asked to borrow them, but Brown said the town won’t let their machines go until they are all caught up thawing lines here.
Questions? Call Public Works at 274-9893 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
