(Ottawa) No showers, baths, or dishes: the city of Calgary, in Western Canada, on Thursday ordered extreme water rationing to its 1.4 million inhabitants for an indefinite period, after the rupture of a major water pipe.
A “critical water supply alert” was sent to residents’ mobile phones at dawn, warning that water levels had “reached a critical state” affecting the city’s ability to supply the population and survive. be prepared in case of fire.
Imploring homes and businesses to conserve water, Mayor Jyoti Gondek recommended “not taking a shower or bath or doing dishes or laundry” until the situation is resolved.
In the neighborhood where the rupture took place, vehicles had to drive amid torrential downpours of water pouring down the streets, while residents were instructed to boil water to drink or brush their teeth.
“Every drop of water will count until the repair is made. Everyone in the city needs to pull together,” Sue Henry, head of Calgary’s emergency management agency, said at a news conference.
The cause of the rupture of the pipe is still unknown but already, the city reserves are having difficulty filling normally, said the city, which estimates that the repair could take “a lot of time”.
The province of Alberta is currently facing a significant drought, but the Bow River, from which Calgary draws its water, saw its conditions improve this spring, according to authorities.