Audio Attachment:Listen to the Communications Manager of the Accra and Tema region of the Ghana Water Company Ltd.
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Peacefmonline.com can confirm that two of the three control panels at the Weija Headworks of the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) that developed an electrical fault and subsequently broke down have been repaired.
Though there are four water pumps at the Weija Water Works, only three of them are usually operational daily and they pump enough raw water from the Densu River into the treatment plant to ensure that at least 55 million gallons of water are produced every day.
With the repairing of the two faulty control panels, water has thus been restored to residents living in some low-pressure areas of Accra, especially Mataheko, Dansoman and Kaneshie.
The Deputy Minister of Water Resources, Works and Housing, Dr. Hannah Bissiw, confirmed this in an interview.
According to her, one of the damaged machines was repaired by local engineers on Monday night, whiles the second control panel restored on Tuesday afternoon after the technical men had worked on it for almost four (4) days.
“The machine started working at exactly 8:25 pm, then thirty five minutes later water started coming through the gasket… the forecast is that by the close of today we should be producing around 40 million gallons,” Hannah Bissiw said.
Currently only about 11 million gallons of water are available for Accra West daily, instead of the usually 55 million gallons a day.
This has caused difficulties to tens of thousands of people who have been running around the city with gallons looking for water.
In a related development, Mr Michael Agyemang, Public Relations Director of GWCL, says the restoration of the pump at the new Weija station would improve water delivery in the city.
"This means that about 15 millions more will be added to the current 11 million gallons from the old works to ameliorate the water situation in the city in the interim," he said.
Mr Agyemang said a new rationing programme had also been drawn up to ensure that the little water available now could be shared equitably among residents of the city.
He said the 11 million gallons of water that were previously channelled to Kasoa had been diverted to Accra and some more water from the Kpong Water Works had also been diverted to resolve the problem.
"We have also supplied jumbo plastic tanks in some of the severely affected areas and are working on getting some tanks to some schools as well," he said.
Mr Agyemang said offices which had tanks had also been asked to take them to the GWCL Booster Station at Okponglo and get some water.
Meanwhile engineers from South African-based Rockwell Limited, the company which sold the water pumps and power panels to GWCL, are expected in the country on Thursday to determine whether the panels can be repaired or have to be replaced.
The four electric pumps that pump water from the Densu River into the treatment plant at Weija stopped working when the air valve at the station blew up and allowed water to spill over into the electric panels that supply power to the pumps.
According to Mr Agyemang, the engineers at the station tried to restart the pumps but they could not and they could not also detect the exact damage.
The damage has led to a grave water shortage problem in the city and the engineers at GWCL and Aqua Vitens Rand Limited (AVRL) have said the manufacturers have been contacted to come and assess the situation.
Source: Alex Ofei/Peacefmonline.com with additional files from GNA
