Now that we are in autumn and the weather is cooling down, there is less risk of tighter restrictions being introduced, but in the heat of summer, the threat of a water shortage was very real.
That’s why during the last few months, Wellington City Council was training staff to help their communities, should a water shortage emergency occur.
About 50 staff members learnt how to manage water distribution points for households that were at higher risk of experiencing water shortages, based on their locations. Due to Wellington city’s topography, some homes that are located on the hills within Wellington could have trouble accessing water due to a drop in their water pressure.
While Wellington City Council have a number of emergency water tanks, not all of these are located in areas that experience low water pressure. As a result, the team at the Council worked hard to develop a solution to get water closer to households that might’ve been affected.
This plan revolved around water distribution points that could be established and operated by Council staff. The water distribution points would be located as close as possible to the affected neighbourhoods, so people did not have to travel far to collect their water.