01/03/2024

Iwade Parish Council held a meeting with Southern Water and KCC regarding water leaks in the village and can provide the following update:

Ferry Road Leak:

KCC Highways advised they are going to install 44 meters of perforated pipework to take the water leak to the nearest drain in Ferry Road. They are hopeful this work can be completed by the end of March but do not have an agreed date at present. When the work commences it will take 5 to 6 days to complete. During the work access to the village hall will be restricted to one gate for entrance and egress.

KCC advised the leak could be a natural spring, but has doubts due to a water sample they took during the icy weather testing positive for chlorine.

It was agreed that both KCC and Southern Water representatives will take a water sample from the leak in Ferry Road at the same time to test for chlorine in two different independent laboratories. They will also take a sample from the domestic water supply nearby for comparison.

To investigate the cause of the leak, Highways are planning to dig a hole 1.5meters deep in the road and a grass verge to find out if the leak is localized to the area.

The Parish Council asked KCC and Southern Water to investigate the subsidence in the road outside Helen Thompson Close, which has subsided several times.

The Parish Council raised concerns regarding subsidence in Ferry Road due to the ongoing leak for 2 years and whether a sink hole could appear. KCC advised there is no evidence to suggest the leak has caused any subsidence and testing and action will only be taken if any problems occur.

Southern Water have been carrying out drive by acoustic testing during the last 2-3 weeks and have not picked up any leaks in the area.

School Lane Leak:

The leak is coming from a cable TV manhole cover. A chlorine test carried out on a handheld device was previously taken by Southern Water which did not show chlorine in the water. Southern Water will have a water sample tested in a laboratory to confirm if chlorine is present in the water. If the test is negative, KCC will contact the cable TV company to let them know there is a problem that needs to be addressed.

17/11/2023

We experienced issues yesterday when trying to complete a CCTV survey of the water main. Essentially, the camera we usually use for these types of surveys could not enter the whole main, due to previous enabling works carried out.

Our contractor Clancy and our leakage detection specialists PN Daly are meeting today to discuss next steps, look at how we can resolve and arrange a new date for the survey. However, this will not be until December at the earliest.

We know the location of the leak near the Woolpack pub and while no leak is OK, this one is stable. As the repair of this leak will require traffic management, the plan is to complete the CCTV survey to see if there are any other leaks in the area, and then repair them in one go, to try and minimise the disruption on the community with one set of works.

However, please be assured we know how this continued disruption is impacting you and you’ve been very patient for a long time.

Therefore, a decision has been made to reinstate the impacted area on Ferry Road next week and clear the site, until we know what is happening with the CCTV survey. The current excavated holes in the ground are not needed for the CCTV survey, so we want to reinstate the area, remove the traffic management and then re-assess once the survey is completed, as it may prove that there is no leak on our network.

For timelines next week, Clancy will be on site from Wednesday to Friday.

Thank you for your continued patience.

 

01/11/2023

In my last update I advised of the scheduled CCTV survey of the water main to see what is happening inside the pipe, which will help us detect any potential issues and leaks.

The survey was scheduled for 24 October but was unfortunately postponed and rescheduled for Thursday 2 November. Now due to the imminent arrival of Storm Ciarán, the survey has been postponed as a health and safety precaution.

As soon as we have a confirmed date for the rescheduled survey, I will update you.

Other work has been continuing and last week we installed pressure recorders, which will help us record any areas where pressure may dip, which could be a sign of a leak.

 

12/10/2023

Yesterday we carried out a pre-survey, as we make plans for the CCTV survey of the water main to see what is happening inside the pipe, which will help us detect any potential issues and leaks. The CCTV survey has now been confirmed to take place on Tuesday 24 October.

You may have also noticed one of our excavations has been backfilled, and on Monday 16 October we are excavating the area where a washout was fitted, so we can continue our extensive leakage detection.

Thank you for raising the issue regarding the pedestrian safety step in the area when we met. This has been resolved, so please let me know if there are any further concerns.

While it may seem like a small update, I just wanted to reassure you and the community that a lot of work is happening our end to try and resolve this issue.

 

02/10/2023

Thank you for your time today and the feedback you provided. I want to stress how seriously we are taking this issue and we want to resolve it ASAP, so the impact on the village reduces.

Different methods of leakage detection have been ongoing for a number of weeks but we have not yet found a leak. Water found during the investigation so far has been tested but it was not fresh water, which indicates it is not a leak.

Our contractors will be on site every day for the rest of this week (Tuesday to Friday) and will be continuing our extensive leakage detection work.

You will notice them in and around the large hole we have dug outside Iwade Village Hall, as we continue our leakage detection and check a smaller area of the 18-inch water pipe to try and pinpoint any leak.

Our contractor is also immediately looking into the safety step in this area, to ensure it is not a health and safety hazard with the puddle of water.

Although a date hasn’t been confirmed yet, we will also be undertaking a CCTV survey of the water main to see what is happening inside the pipe, which will help us detect any potential issues and leaks.

Other works to be arranged include a check of our assets in Helen Thompson Close, but before we do, we need to ensure the traffic management required for this work doesn’t cause a further impact on the community with the existing traffic management in place. We are very keen to remove any traffic management as quickly and safely as possible, but our investigation continues.

We are very sorry for the disruption our leakage detection is causing. We want to find and fix any potential problems ASAP, but at this time we have not yet found any leaks on our water main.

We will keep you updated.