Waipukurau’s water turned off for five hours: ‘Our community is always at risk’

An emergency shutdown left some Waipukurau residents without drinking water for five hours on Wednesday.

The drinking water supply to the township was turned off to make an emergency repair on the water main that runs from the Pukeora Reservoir, and supplies water to Waipukurau, at 12.20am on February 19.

A Central Hawke’s Bay District Council spokeswoman said the connection to the ‘water lateral’, which joins the household water supply to the mains water pipe, was repaired.

The aging connector had failed.

Water was restored to all homes by 5.30am.

Mayor Alex Walker said the shutdown showed the tough call made by Central Hawke’s Bay District Council to prioritise investment in a second water supply was the right one.

The emergency shutdown to complete the repair work took around five hours.

“It confirms our decision last year to focus resources on water supply infrastructure was absolutely the right call.”

The Three Year Plan 2024-2027 includes the replacement of the Pukeora Reservoir and the new Waipawa to Waipukurau Drinking Water Supply projects.

“Paying for this major investment as a community of 4400 connected water ratepayers is a big part of the rating increases outlined in the Three Year Plan 2024 – 2027.”

But she said without it “our community is always at risk of a major, impactful shutdown”.

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Walker said the community needed to see the Government’s new Local Water Done Well policy deliver on affordability challenges.

“We know we need to invest in resilient and safe drinking water but the ability of our communities to pay is our most pressing challenge.”

Central Hawke’s Bay District Council chief executive Doug Tate said there was an ongoing risk until the renewal and resilience upgrade work was completed to the 100-year-old reservoirs and pipes.

“Water is one of the biggest infrastructure investments we need to make.”

Tate said reservoir and pipe renewal work was part of a larger programme of work to deliver resilient water infrastructure across the district, such as the work on Racecourse Rd in Waipukurau.

He said poor conditions, and historic under-investment in the drinking water network, made the need for investment urgent.