Blarney and Tower outage latest: water supplies restored 

Uisce Éireann and Cork County Council have successfully completed repair works and new pumps have been installed following a mechanical failure on Wednesday at a pumping station at Curraleigh Reservoir in Tower.

Following reports of outages yesterday, water services crews were dispatched to resolve the issue and the water utility company said every measure was made to reduce the impact on homes and businesses and restore water supply as quickly as possible.

Impacted areas included Cloughphillip, Kerry Road, Model Village, Dromin Drive and parts of Bawnafinny.

Earlier today water tankers were distributing emergency supplies of water to affected areas in Blarney and Tower.

Uisce Éireann’s Pat Britton has thanked the public for their patience while repair works were underway.

“We understand how disruptive unplanned outages are for local communities and would like to thank all impacted customers for their patience while crews worked on repairs,” he said.

“I would also like to thank the water services crews in Cork County Council for their dedication and for working hard to limit the impact on customers and successfully complete the repairs. In addition, thanks to the residents, businesses and elected representatives in the area for sharing our updates and for their patience and understanding as we worked on the repairs.” 

The company said can take two to three hours following low pressure for normal supply to be fully restored to all areas as water refills the network.

Following this type of work, occasionally issues such as cloudy water (air bubbles), discolouration or internal airlocks may arise.

For advice on how to resolve these issues, please visit www.water.ie/help/supply/after-an-outage/.

The Uisce Éireann care helpline is also open 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and members of the public can also contact the company on Twitter @IWCare with any queries.

Uisce Éireann said it regretted any inconvenience caused by this disruption.

Earlier today

Water tankers are distributing emergency supplies of water to parts of Blarney and Tower left without running water following a burst on a high pressure water main from Curraleigh Reservoir early yesterday.

Uisce Éireann said it has arranged that an alternative water supply would be in place from 9am this morning, with water tanker lorries in place at St. Senan’s Graveyard car park, and supplies would be maintained throughout the day.

The utility company, which changed its name from Irish Water this year, said people were reminded to use their own containers when taking water from the tankers and to boil water before consumption as a precautionary measure as per HSE advice.

Following the burst water main at Curraleigh Reservoir yesterday, dedicated water services crews were dispatched and worked on repairs to reduce the impact on homes and businesses and restore normal water supply, a spokesperson for Uisce Éireann said.

“Repairs were completed quickly and reservoirs began to refill, however, a mechanical failure at the pumping station near the cemetery in Tower, is resulting in further outages impacting customers in Cloghphillip, Kerry Road, Model Village, Dromin Drive and parts of Bawnafinny.

“Crews are making every effort to reduce the impact on customers and are currently tankering water to the reservoir to increase water levels. Work [continued overnight] to help reservoir levels recover and the network recharge,” they said.

Normal water supply had returned to the majority of the area impacted, they added, however, it was taking longer for supply to return fully to some the public, especially those higher ground or at the end of the network.

The company said it was urging homeowners and businesses in Tower and surrounding areas to conserve water.

Pat Britton, of Uisce Éireann, said the company understood how disruptive unplanned outages were and wished to thank impacted the public for their patience while work to restore the water supply as quickly as possible continued.

“We are urging customers to continue to conserve water, especially at this time, by not running taps needlessly, taking showers instead of baths and to postpone using dishwashers and washing machines where possible,” he said.

Following these types of repair works, the company said, occasionally issues such as cloudy water or air bubbles, discolouration or internal airlocks may arise.

For advice on how to resolve these issues, the company urged people to visit www.water.ie/help/supply/after-an-outage/.

The Uisce Éireann spokesperson added that the company understood the inconvenience caused by unplanned outages and thanked people for their patience.

The Uisce Éireann customer care helpline is open 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and customers can also contact us on Twitter @IWCare with any queries. For updates please visit the Water Supply Updates section.