Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Some Charlottetown businesses say they didn't get enough warning their water would be shut off for much of the day Tuesday. On Monday, the city issued a notice saying the Water and Sewer Utility would be conducting repairs to a leaking water valve near Grafton and Rochford streets. The notice stated customers in the area would be without water from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. AT on Tuesday. The outage was later extended to 5:30 p.m.
The boil water advisory for Hillsburgh was lifted on Saturday. The Ministry of Health issued the notice Wednesday, warning residents and businesses to stop using the drinking water system immediately. According to Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph Public Health, three water samples were collected on July 12 and July 13. They were tested for total coliform and E. coli bacteria. The health inspector now says “the test results indicate the water is bacteriologically safe to drink.” As such, the boil water advisory was removed.
“We tested in 2015 and had 53 milligrams per litre result. Over 20 mg/l needs to be reported to health unit — they advise that a notice should be posted to advise users who may have a medical reason to manage sodium intake — which we did. When we did a test this spring, it came back 120 mg/l. Again, we advised the health unit and posted.”
For a day and a half, Susan Holita lived with the prospect of having her water shut off — through no fault of her own. She was stressed and wasn't exactly sure when the water would stop. Not knowing when it would happen was almost as stressful as the prospect of living without running water. Holita has been living in the one-bedroom condo on Golding Street, near St. Joseph's Hospital, since she moved to Saint John, N.B., in 2018 and has always paid her rent, which includes water.
Transport Canada has served notice it will seize and dispose of 11 vessels moored in False Creek that the federal agency deems wrecked, abandoned or hazardous. “Transport Canada can deem a vessel abandoned if it is left unattended for two years or less in circumstances where it appears that the owner will not be returning,” a spokeswoman for Transport Canada said in an emailed response to questions.
About 600 east Saint John homes and businesses are under a boil water after a 53-year-old water main broke. The break in the 250-millimetre (roughly 10-inch) cast iron water main on Hickey Road, near On the Vine Meat & Produce, was discovered "late Friday evening into early Saturday morning," said city spokesperson Nathalie Logan. It left area residents without any water for about 14 hours, according to Logan.
A notice was dropped in mailboxes and shared online for residents of Lansdowne recently about elevated sodium levels in the drinking water. The notice from the Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit stated that the medical officer of health had instructed them to inform residents of the test results. A sample taken on Jan. 13 revealed the sodium at 58.4 mg/l, and a repeat sample taken on Jan. 18 has shown a sodium level of 70.8 mg/l. Any level of sodium above 20 milligrams per litre must be reported to the medical officer of health, stated the notice.
The Stz’uminus First Nation reservoir has lost 500,000 litres of water after a damaged fire hydrant was discovered in the Shell Beach area of Stz’uminus. Due to the water loss, Stz’uminus does not have enough water in the reservoir to safely fight a fire if one broke out. Local fire departments are on standby with pumper trucks in the event of a fire. In a press release, Stz’uminus said that 33 truckloads of water will be brought in to help refill the reservoir at ‘significant cost’.
The Yukon government is suing a construction company for $1.5 million over what it claims was a botched upgrade to the Mayo water treatment plant. The Department of Community Services, in a statement of claim filed in the Yukon Supreme Court on Nov. 16, alleges that the work done by Wildstone Construction and Engineering Ltd. had a number of "deficiencies," including tanks with "visible leaks and are not watertight." The government is also seeking more than $1 million from Intact Insurance, an insurance company that served as a surety for the construction contract.
