2018-06-29Staff Report 2 Aron Mushaukwa KATIMA MULILO – Residents of Sibbinda settlement, located about 60 kilometres from Katima Mulilo in Zambezi Region, might get their first running water today (Friday), NamWater has announced. Sibbinda has been without water for more than a month. The water shortage was caused by low water pressure in the main NamWater pipeline that supplies the rural settlement from Katima Mulilo. Those who are affected include all villages around Sibbinda, the constituency office and the local clinic. Speaking to New Era, the regional head of NamWater in Zambezi, Keith Siukuta, said the national water utility has been working tirelessly to find a solution so that residents are supplied with water. One such solution, Siukuta said, was that as of Tuesday this week NamWater started using two water pumps to increase pressure in the supply pipes. Previously one pump supplied water up until Sibbinda. However the increase in demand has called for NamWater to modify its operations. “Three years ago we had a pipe which ended at Sachinga, and water used to reach there without a problem, however when the pipe was extended to Sibbinda, with additional customers of about one thousand, it surpassed demand capacity,” said Siukuta. He stressed that ever since the problem of low water pressure was identified, NamWater has been working around the clock to find a long-term solution. “We isolated 28 water tanks along the line, and connected water meters directly to the line. But this was not working so we decided to modify our two water pumps, now they are pumping water at the same time. Hopefully by Friday water might reach the end of the line,” he said. Siukuta said that many leakages along the pipeline have also not helped the situation. He added that in the long run they are planning to install a booster pump at Bitto to have a long-term solution. He also told New Era that in the past month when they have been facing the problem of low pressure they supplied water to the area by using tanks. 2018-06-29Staff Report 2
