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Families are fed up of the ‘drip, drip, drip’ disappointment of their power showers sending just a trickle of water over their sweaty bodies as they attempt to refresh from the sizzling sun.
A call to pump up the power into homes and buildings has gone out from MPs, municipal councillors and Capital Trustees Board members following numerous complaints from residents.
Most of those affected are from East Riffa and they are demanding that the Southern Municipal Council asks the Electricity and Water Authority (EWA) to fix a water pressure problem.
Low water pressure ... complaints
“There is something clearly wrong with water pressure that requires an inquiry to underline reasons behind this inconvenience,” said Strategic Thinking Bloc president MP Ahmed Al Salloom.
And, it’s not only showering that is getting people hot under the collar and in a spin with laundering clothes, washing the plates, knives, forks and spoons and even flushing the toilet has been proving problematic.
“We are not sure whether the EWA is deliberately lowering the volume of water pressure in a bid to conserve resources, or the matter is a technical issue related to pumps, or it could be high usage per area, or simply that the network needs further maintenance or replacing worn out pipes,” Mr Al Salloom added.
“People want to be able to wash their clothes and utensils, and flush the toilets, or bathe without worry.
“We all appreciate that the EWA is modernising its networks but water pressure shouldn’t be such an issue in a developed and urban country such as Bahrain.”
The request to investigate the matter has been referred by the bloc to Parliament Speaker Ahmed Al Musallam, who has asked the public utilities and environment affairs committee to look into it.
It comes as the Southern Municipal Council has also unanimously approved moves to strengthen the water pressure covering the East Riffa network.
The council’s financial, administrative and legislative committee chairman and East Riffa councillor said the problem had been a long standing issue in Blocks 907 and 909.
Mr Al Shaikh
“There are cases in which water is not just weak, it cuts off when someone is showering!” said Mr Al Shaikh. “The situation appears to worsen on Fridays.
“We don’t really care if they test water pressure remotely, electronically or smartly – we want the situation resolved whether here in East Riffa or across Bahrain.”
Meanwhile, council’s services and public utilities committee chairman Khalid Shajira said the whole water network in the country needed to be checked.
Mr Shajira
“The summer here is unforgiving,” he said. “The EWA needs to act now before peak summer temperatures. We would like to thank Parliament for its quick response to our concerns and hope a speedy resolution can be found.”
The council’s request has been referred to Municipalities Affairs and Agriculture Minister Wael Al Mubarak to forward to Electricity and Water Affairs Minister Yasser Humaidan for review.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
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