Thousands to benefit from well at Sophia

– expected to become operational in 1 week

A resuscitated well at the Sophia Water Treatment Plant is ready to be put into operation within a week’s time which will see thousands of residents in Sophia, Greater Georgetown and nearby communities benefiting.

GWI CEO Shaik Baksh samples the water that was being pump tested

This was after a pump test was conducted on Tuesday at the location.
Guyana Water Inc (GWI) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shaik Baksh visited the facility on Wednesday to witness the production capacity of the well.
The activation of the well would provide great relief to the residents of Sophia, Cummings Lodge, Turkeyen, Pattensen and surrounding areas, who have been experiencing a reduced level of service for some time.
“This well has been dormant here for well over three years in this treatment plant compound so with the collapse of the well in North Ruimveldt, we had to move expeditiously to activate this well and I’m happy to report that the well is functioning properly and the production is good,” the CEO said.
He added that customers could look forward to increased hours of service and water pressure in their homes, in excess of 10 feet, providing that certain factors were taken into consideration. These include repairing leaks and metering customers to promote conservation.
“I want to call on the residents of Sophia to settle their outstanding balances in a timely manner because it’s quite costly to operate this plant and provide treated water. This will help GWI to help them,” Baksh said.
GWI’s Georgetown Regional Manager, Curtis Niles pointed out that it was necessary for customers to help the utility to identify leaks in Sophia.
“So as we come and we repair those leaks, the level of service will significantly improve. Because of the improved pressure, lines that have been tampered with will now tend to leak so we will have three to four teams working in the community to repair those leaks and raise your level of service,” he stated.
The CEO expressed satisfaction that the works to activate the well and install the transmission are being done by in-house staff, while Engineer Rochelle Hopkinson noted that the well was performing beyond their expectations.
One of the water sources for the communities is the North Ruimveldt Number Two well, which is currently out of operation following the collapse of the well casing.
GWI continues to work assiduously to ensure that customers in the aforementioned communities have access to an adequate supply of water within the timeframe outlined.