Water woes continue for Onderneeming residents

Sep 12, 2019 News

After more than a month, the residents living in Onderneeming on the Essequibo Coast, are still suffering from an inadequate supply of water
provided by the Guyana Water Incorporated [GWI].

The GWI pump station at Onderneeming Sandpit

Onderneeming Sandpit area is a newly established community on the Essequibo Coast with three housing schemes. The community depended on a pump that provided an adequate supply of water until last July when it malfunctioned.
Ever since, the community has been dependent on the Suddie pumping station for its supply of water. Based on reports reaching Kaieteur News, however, the Suddie Pump is incapable of serving the entire Onderneeming Sand Pit area, in addition to the Suddie communities.
A resident of the Onderneeming community told this publication yesterday that there are times when the community receives just one hour of service per day. The concerned resident said, “It’s since July our pumping station is down and the GWI started to give us water from the Suddie pumping station, like an hour or so a day or sometime every other day. Onderneeming is the largest housing scheme on the Essequibo Coast and not only that, but everyone can’t afford to buy water.”
In the meantime, GWI officials have informed some residents that efforts are being made to have a normal service resume by this weekend. While residents are looking forward to normalcy, they are still unsure as to whether or not the utility company can pull off a repair within the time frame promised. “GWI just promising us; they say by this weekend it will work but so far I ain’t see a person come to visit it and the field workers tell the boss of the office up here that they (residents) are sharing (their black tank water) in the community when this is not so; we are tired of this situation,” said one resident.
Residents are even more disappointed that despite the poor service, they still have to pay their bills at the end of the month. According to the resident, “In our community just a few have water meters and the rest have a flat price to pay ever month and you have $1,300 a month and the bills still coming the same way, never mind the water is coming ones upon time.”

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News