Water back on for family

Water back on for family

By GEOFF CUMMING

Water Pressure Group campaigners dug up an Onehunga street yesterday to restore water supply to a house cut off by Metrowater.
The Auckland City Water Company disconnected the Grey street house more than a month ago because the owners refused to pay the wastewater component of his water bill.
A spokesman for the pressure group Jim Gladwin said the occupiers, three generations of one family, have had to survive by fill pots and pans from a neighbours hose garden.
A “turn-on squad” of 100 supporter took about three hours to reconnect the pipe to the water main, he said.
A pickaxe was used to dig through the road seal and expose the water main and feeder pipe.
A previous attempted to restore the supply brought a public safety warning from the company.
Its spokeswoman Sharon Buckland, said last night that the water main is under enormous pressure and if proper procedures were not followed a fitting could blow off and kill or injure by-standers.
Mr Gladwin said the reconnection yesterday was achieved safely and road cones warned passing motorist
of the work.
Sharon Buckland said she was not sure whether the company would again cut off the supply.
“We have a responsibility to our other customers if they are paying to make sure everybody pays” she said.
“But there doesn’t seem to be anything to gain to inflaming the Water Pressure Group -------it just seems to make them more dangerous, which is not in the public interest.”
Jim Gladwin said recently: “The Water Pressure Group are…. fairly conservative ratepayers and when a section of the community like that rebels a question has to be asked.”
Sharon Buckland said Metrowater was relying on a High Court ruling to clarify the issue of wastewater payments once and for all
A pre-hearing conference is scheduled this week.

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