Calgary's inconsistent weather continues to cause water main breaks
If Sangeetha Ravindran and her twin eight-year-old daughters get thirsty, they have to make a trip to the water truck outside their Parkdale home, instead of heading to the kitchen.
"Since Wednesday night, we've had no water," said Ravindran. "So Thursday, we got this water wagon. It's okay. At least we have water to drink."
Thirty homes in the northwest community have been without running water since a water main burst earlier this week.
It's one of 11 water main bursts across Calgary in the last 48 hours.
"Everything is a problem right now," Ravindran said. "Cooking, we have not had a shower, toilets are not flushing… so all the basic things."
The City of Calgary says roughly 200 homes, along with many businesses, are affected by all the water main breaks.
Officials say a cycle of freezing and then warming temperatures is to blame.
Martin Haefcke, an instructor in SAIT's pipe trades program, says Calgary's older neighbourhoods tend to suffer more in these situations.
"As people drive on streets, and the longer an area has been there, the frost gets deeper, because the ground gets more compact," Haefcke said. "So frost gets down to areas that it didn't usually... Sometimes that just happens. Sometimes it's just age. (It's) a pretty common issue to some parts that are quite old now, that wear and tear."
The city says it usually can fix water main breaks with two days, but crews are swamped right now so they may have to hire external contractors to help get the job done.
Meanwhile, the Ravindrans hope they soon won't need to make any more trips to the water truck.
"(The city) says they'll fix it within 48 hours," Sangeetha said on Friday.. "By the end of tonight, it will be 48, so we are hoping it's be done and restored."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.