A damaged pump in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) has been identified as the root cause of the water woes facing residents in sections of the region.
Guyana Times was contacted with numerous reports from residents seeking an intervention into their current plight of not being able to access water from their water supply system.
According to residents, the problem has been a recurring one, which has been affecting them for over a month now.
Numerous calls were made by this publication to the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) to determine where the issue was stemming from, whether the company was aware of the concerns being raised, and if so, was it being addressed. This publication was unable to speak with anyone who could address the concerns raised.
However, after an investigation was conducted by Guyana Times, it was unearthed that the main pump located at the Meten-Meer-Zorg, West Coast Demerara (WCD) Pump Station, was broken.
When this publication visited the location on Tuesday, it was noticed that the pump was indeed broken, causing water to pour out, flooding the inside of the station.
When this newspaper spoke to one of the workers there, it was highlighted that the broken pump is taking in sand and as such, the lines are being clogged causing the water not to flow to the main pipes.
The worker further relayed that currently, GWI is seeking to have the pump fixed to ease the burden on the affected residents but noted that the pump needs to be replaced.
“This pump that you see here, has been here for a number of years, so even though we are trying to fix it right now, it will only work for a short time”.
The worker could not specify when the problem would be rectified.
The Regional Chairman when contacted by this newspaper said that he was not aware of the GWI’s pump being broken but expressed hope that the problem would be dealt with promptly.
He noted that he was contacted by “thousands” of residents and was very unhappy with the issue of the residents having to struggle to acquire water for daily use.
Up to press time, GWI could not be contacted for further comments.
