City of Prince Rupert State of Emergency in effect until at least Dec. 23

The Local State of Emergency is still in effect and will be reviewed at the end of the week, the City of Prince Rupert advised residents in a media release providing a situation update on Dec. 19.

“There are currently three active water main breaks on Crestview, 7th Ave. East, and 1st Ave. East, with one at risk of re-breaking, due to the likelihood of additional fracturing in the pipe. There are additionally six active water service breaks, with four of those occurring on the City-side. We apologize to those residents and businesses experiencing service impacts in those areas and are working as quickly as possible to restore service,” the statement reads.

The local state of emergency was declared on Dec. 17 in an emergency City Council session because city crews could not keep up with necessary repairs after numerous water main and service breaks occurred. Adding in the cold weather, concerns are high that more breaks will occur, hence the state of emergency was placed as a precautionary measure in order to appropriately resource and respond to water infrastructure issues and funding.

Two local contracting firms have been hired to assist city workers with the main breaks as crews are “triaging on a 24-hour-a-day basis” to focus on the remaining breaks plus keeping up with salting and due to the high demands.

The city wants to stress to residents the municipal tap water is fine to drink and as part of household preparedness additional water should be on hand in case of emergencies.

“We would really like to emphasize that folks can draw water from their taps to fill emergency water containers (4L per person/per day for 72 hours is standard suggestion from Emergency Management BC), rather than having people buy out all of the water from stores. There is currently no water quality advisory in place so tap water is safe to use unless individual residences have been alerted otherwise (if there is a localized break),” Veronika Stewart, communications manager for the city told The Northern View in an email.

The city is also requesting that community members run their taps at a slow drip to prevent pipes freezing in homes, as City resources will be stretched in responding to water shut-off requests during this time.

“The City’s Emergency Operations Centre is currently active and coordinating local response and will be revisiting the Local State of Emergency at the end of the week to determine if it will be extended over the holiday.”

“Given local conditions, we ask that if you call our Customer Service or after hours numbers, that you do so only for emergency repairs or service. If you experience a water break [from] city infrastructure in your neighbourhood, evidenced by significantly reduced water pressure and no indication of a break in your home, please call (250) 624 6795 during regular office hours and (250) 624 3000 after hours (evenings and weekends). If you experience a water break that is known to be in your home, please shut off your water via the shut-off valve in your home and call a plumber directly,” the media statement advises.