Merritt residents told to conserve water after well failure

There has been a "major failure" at a well in Merritt,B.C., prompting the city to ask residents to stop all non-essential water use.

The city saidin a statement that the failure is in the Voght well and affects the city's water distribution system.

In an interview with CBC'sBC Today guest host Amy Bell, MerrittMayor Michael Goetz said a gasket on the city's main pump "let go," sending a stream of water into an electrical panel.

"It's kind of a freak situation," he said.

Goetz said Tuesday afternoon electricians would be looking at the issue.

It said residents of the city, which number around 7,000, need to conserve water by all means possible so it can maintain its fire protection services.

No lawn watering is permitted until a pump is repaired.

The city says itswater remains potable and asks that residents be patient while repairs are underway.

"We are just erring on the side of caution," Goetz told CBC.

WATCH | Merritt's mayor discussescity's water distribution issues:

'It's kind of a freak situation,' but well failure under control, says Merritt's mayor

2 months ago

Duration 1:30

BC Today guest host Amy Bell asks Merritt Mayor Michael Goetz about a "major failure" at a city well that has prompted the city to ask residents to conserve water by all means possible.

A heat warning remains in place in the southern Interior, including for the Merritt area, with daytime highs expected to reach the low 40s through the end of the week.

The well failurecomes after the Cityof Merrittannouncedwater restrictions in April much earlier than usual in an effort to conserve water before wildfire season and get residentsin the habit of using less.

In previous years, the city has fined people who haven't followed watering restrictions. But this spring, officials saidthey wouldshut off homeowners' waterif they didn't follow the rules.