Co Kildare homeowners being left suddenly without running water

Concerns are mounting in Leixlip that as Kildare County Council urges water conservation, there could be another water cut,leaving 6,000 people in Confey without running water.

Leixlip based Fine Gael Cllr Joe Neville is urgently imploring Irish Water to investigate the reason or reasons that suddenly, usually at night, residents, some of whom are pensioners and young families , wake up to find that they have no running water, and like the June Bank Holiday weekend, had reports of local shops running out of water.

Cllr Neville wants Irish Water to ascertain why 3,000 homes in Confey are since last year, enduring sudden water losses, and wants to know if the cause is pipes that are too old.

He said: "There is no need to have one third of a town in Kildare being treated differently. Will this happen in July or August. It is not ideal, elderly people living on their own, no water tanks being made available. This is a health and safety issue."

Over the next three years, Leixlip is in line for 700 more houses, Cllr Neville says that infrastructure needs to be put in place for these houses.

Cllr Neville says that while people are not paying for water, they are paying a property tax. 

Last summer Leixlip endured many water supply issues and Kildare County Council provided water tankers.

However, this year, during lockdown, Cllr Neville says water tankers were not delivered.

He said: "Water tankers are not just sitting there, but there should be a report from Irish Water as to why the people of Confey are not getting running water sometimes."

With very low rainfall in recent months and more water use at home, water supplies are under pressure. #ConserveWater and mend dripping taps and running toilets, and don't use the garden hose