Boil water advisory in effect for 3 Calgary communities
Three southwest Calgary communities are under a boil water advisory due to a watermain break Thursday afternoon at a nearby construction site.
It appears as though an excavator ruptured a pipe, resulting in a large pool of water flooding a portion of the site.
Alberta Health Services (AHS) says residents in Silverado, Yorkville, and Belmont are advised to bring tap water to a rolling boil for at least one minute before consumption.
Water used for bathing or washing clothes does not need to be boiled, but residents in the impacted areas should bring tap water to a boil before brushing their teeth, cleaning raw foods, preparing any type of juice or other drinks, and making ice.
One CTV News viewer says blackened water was coming from their taps late Thursday night.
According to the city's website, 1,000 homes and 100 businesses have been impacted by service interruptions.
Fatima Pacon, who lives in the area, says she noticed something wrong with her water at around 4 p.m. on Thursday.
"I opened the tap in my kitchen and there was no water," she told CTV News. "I couldn't tell if it was my house or the neighbourhood."
She tried 311 but found the waiting list was too long, so gave up.
"We didn't know what was going on."
She soon learned what the issue was when she went online.
"I went to the calgary.ca website and say that there was a problem with the water main."
Nick Sikora has a family of six along with a couple dogs in his household and says the issue has been hard to deal with.
"It caught us off-guard."
Water has been restored to most of the affected properties, but the boil water notice will remain in place until further notice.
The city is now working with Alberta Environment and Protected Areas and AHS to resolve the issue.
"Our crews worked quickly to restore water after a main break on Thursday afternoon," said Chris Huston, acting director of water services, in a statement on Friday.
"We were able to restore water to the affected communities early Friday morning. The boil water advisory has been issued out of an abundance of caution."
Pacon says her home has water again and her family is managing with the boil water advisory.
"It looks fine – it's not discoloured or anything. It doesn't smell or anything, but we're boiling it."
A contractor will be on-site Friday to continue with repairs.
More information on boil water procedures can be found here.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From AI running wild to collapsing ecosystems, government report outlines future disruptions
From collapsing ecosystems to artificial intelligence running wild, a new Canadian government report outlines 35 disruptions that could rattle the country in the coming years.
B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton hospitalized after prison attack
British Columbia serial killer Robert Pickton was attacked and sustained life-threatening injuries in a Quebec prison Sunday in what officials described as a 'major assault.'
opinion Tom Mulcair: With Trudeau spiralling, Mark Carney waits in the wings
In his latest column for CTVNews.ca, former NDP leader Tom Mulcair argues that if there's an unofficial frontrunner in the eventual race to replace Justin Trudeau as Liberal leader, it has to be former Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney.
Air turbulence: When can it become dangerous?
Flight turbulence like that encountered by a Singapore Airlines flight on Tuesday is extremely common, but there's one aspect of severe turbulence an aviation expert says can lead to serious injury.
Toronto Blue Jays fan struck by 110 m.p.h foul ball offered tickets, signed baseball by team
The Toronto Blue Jays have offered tickets and a signed baseball to a fan who says she was struck in the face by a 110 m.p.h (177 km/h) foul ball at Friday’s game.
OPP continues to investigate boat collision north of Kingston, Ont. that left 3 people dead
Ontario Provincial Police continue to investigate a long weekend fatal boat collision on Bobs Lake, north of Kingston, Ont.
Matthew Perry's death is being investigated over ketamine level found in actor's blood, reports say
An investigation has been opened into the death of Matthew Perry and how the “Friends” actor received the anesthetic ketamine, which was ruled a contributing factor in his death.
Police in Ontario say suspects charged in armed home invasion near Toronto part of 'larger criminal network'
Police in Ontario say a group of suspects charged in an armed home invasion north of Toronto last year were driving a vehicle stolen in a carjacking in Calgary just one month earlier.
Orphan orca's extended family spotted off northeast side of Vancouver Island
Members of a killer whale pod related to an orphan orca calf that escaped a remote British Columbia tidal lagoon last month have been spotted off the northeast coast of Vancouver Island.