The Water Authority of Fiji is reminding people not to improperly flush or throw rags, plastic bags or diapers after an incident of sewerage overflow was reported in Nadawa yesterday.
WAF Acting Manager Waste Water Treatment, Josaia Koroilavesau, says while in the process of carrying out works after complaints raised by the residents, their technicians were able to determine that the cause of the overflow was a blockage within the pumps, as well as the emergency stop switch being engaged.
Koroilavesau says their teams on the ground discovered that one of the causes of the overflow was rags that had been thrown into the chamber, which in turn got tangled up within the impeller, creating a blockage in the pumps.
He says in addition, the emergency stop switch had also been engaged, which they suspect may have been done by individuals who accessed the pumping station by climbing the fence surrounding the complex.
The Manager says they have CCTV footage and are investigating.
He says the issue has been rectified and they are now working on clearing the built-up wastewater in the network, which had accumulated after the engagement of the emergency stop switch.
Koroilavesau adds careless littering down wastewater systems results in major blockages to pipelines and pumps, manhole overflows, damage to essential equipment, and takes their teams away from providing value-adding services to their customers and carrying out vital infrastructural development work.
He further says in an effort to mitigate such problems, they are designing new debris baskets, which they are targeting to install in densely populated residential areas for the purpose of collecting rubbish.
Koroilavesau they are also looking at proposing in the upcoming financial year, other solutions such as the introduction of lockable manhole lids and installing sewer socks downstream of Housing Authority of Fiji and Public Rental Board flats.
