Coronavirus: ‘Only flush poo and pee down toilet - not wipes or Kitchen Roll’ says NI Water

In an appeal on Facebook Sara Venning CEO NI Water says, “These are extraordinary times and I want to reassure all our customers that as an essential service, our top priority is to keep you and your families’ safe through the provision of safe drinking water and the recycling of used water back to the environment.

“At the heart of what we do is our people, we rely on them to maintain our network and keep the water flowing. We pride ourselves in our ‘can do’ attitude and NI Water’s team are ready for this challenge. I would like to express my thanks and appreciation of the work they are doing 24/7 to keep our services running.

“NI Water has a well-tested major incident response regime in place to respond to operational emergencies, however, we would ask the public to be patient with us in this extremely difficult and fast moving situation.

“The public can help us by not flushing wipes and kitchen roll down the toilet. These will damage the sewer system and create blockages either in your home, on the street or at our pumping stations.

“We would also ask for patience if our response to Business As Usual incidents takes a little longer, or maintenance work in areas is postponed. Please be assured this is to allow us to allocate staff and resources to where it is needed to maintain our essential water supply services.”

Other areas where the public can assist the vital work of NI Water:

• Beware of Bogus Callers, claiming to be from NI Water. Use the Quick Check Number 101 to check.

• To keep you and us safe, please be aware that NI Water employees and suppliers have been advised not to make direct face-to-face contact with customers and that NI Water will contact customers via the phone if necessary.

• We will also not leave calling cards to reduce any risk of spreading the virus.

• Ensure you take the advice from the Public Health Authority on handwashing.

• Finally, remember to drink water and stay healthy; 6-8 glasses a day is recommended!

NI Water has an information page on our website https://www.niwater.com/covid19/ detailing further advice and information for customers”.