Calgary water emergency: officials provide update on repairs and plans for review

Repair work continues Tuesday on Calgary’s water infrastructure as the city enters Day 13 of its water supply crisis. As those efforts continue, city officials revealed more about what kind of review will be undertaken to determine what caused a catastrophic water main break on June 5.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek delivered an update on the overall situation on Tuesday morning and was joined by David Duckworth, the city’s chief administrative officer.

Officials have said it has yet to be determined what caused the feeder main break this month, and Gondek said like most Calgarians, she is eager to learn about what exactly happened and is calling for a third-party review of the incident.

“The framework for the full third-party review has already been established,” Duckworth said. “The scope of this review will include, but not be limited to, understanding the factors that contributed to the original pipe failure, understanding of our current practices for inspection and asset sustainability, and it will include recommendations for specific actions to improve water supply resilience moving forward.

“The review will be guided by an expert panel from academia, the water industry, water utilities management, engineering and government entities focused on infrastructure and resilience. The selection of the external consultant and panel members is currently being informed through conversations with the private sector and national water industry associations.”

Duckworth said once an external consultant has been selected to lead the review and a panel has been put together, they will confirm what will make up “the full scope of the review.”

“The expert panel will ultimately provide recommendations based on the findings of this work that we can then action and share with Calgarians,” he said.

“I will personally commit to providing more information as it becomes available.”

David Duckworth, the CAO of the City of Calgary, provides an update on a feeder main break on June 18, 2024. CREDIT: City of Calgary (screenshot from a livestream on YouTube)

On Saturday, Gondek announced that the situation had prompted the city to declare a state of local emergency.

“This is an all-hands-on-deck situation,” she said at the time.

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The feeder main damaged on June 5 is crucial for moving water around the city. Because of the water supply crisis, residents of Calgary and several nearby municipalities were issued a ban on outdoor water use, which remains in effect. They have also been asked to conserve water indoors.

On Friday, officials announced that in addition to the damage originally found on the feeder main, five more “hot spots” had been discovered that required repair.

“As I advised yesterday, the site of the main feeder main has been repaired,” Gondek said on Tuesday. “Of the five areas of concern that still remain, the City of Calgary already has parts for three of those areas to be repaired. And yesterday we saw that the San Diego County Water Authority had shipped two more pieces that we require. … Those parts should be arriving within the next day or two.”

“These hot spots are not leaks,” Duckworth said on Tuesday. “They are identified structural deficiencies that require immediate repair.

“There are no indications of leaks at this point, but that may change as we uncover and assess the pipe at each of these five hot-spot locations.”

Gondek noted that crews were simultaneously working on all five “hot spots” to try to complete repairs as quickly as possible. On Friday, officials said they expect it would be three to five weeks until normal water service can be restored.

Officials have warned that taps could run dry if water demand exceeds supply. Officials also note that the city needs to have enough water for fire emergencies and other potentially life-saving needs.

Update on water conservation efforts

Gondek said Tuesday that Calgarians used about 450 million litres of water on Monday, which she said was below the threshold for usage and “well within the range of water required for storage on a regular basis.”

She and Duckworth thanked Calgary’s citizens and business owners for adhering to restrictions and listening to pleas to conserve water as the crisis continues.

Gondek reminded Calgarians that the situation is not over once all repairs have been made.

“Once this feeder main or transmission pipe is fixed and flushed, it will be tested for safety to make sure that the quality of water is safe for consumption,” she noted. “And that’s when we’ll be able to get everything back to full flow again.”

Mayor Jyoti Gondek provides an update on a Calgary feeder main break on June 18, 2024. CREDIT: City of Calgary (screenshot from a livestream on YouTube)

On Monday, Gondek confirmed that the city’s marquee annual tourism event, the Calgary Stampede, will go ahead on July 5.

“Calgary is open to visitors,” she said on Tuesday, noting that Stampede officials and other leaders in the local tourism sector are taking steps to be able to welcome tourists in a “safe, responsible and sustainable way.”

Gondek noted that while the Stampede sees a spike in visitors to Calgary, many Calgarians usually leave the city in July to go on vacations.

Gondek said she has scheduled a news conference for 2 p.m. local time on Tuesday to provide another update on the situation.

For the latest updates from the City of Calgary, you can follow the city’s social media channels or click on its website here.

For the latest Alberta Emergency Alerts, you can click on the province’s website here.