Winnipeg, MB - City of Winnipeg officials today advise that, to prevent an interruption of service before it happens, an additional 936 properties have been identified as being at an increased risk of the City’s portion of the water pipe freezing (from the water main to the shut-off valve, usually at the property line).
Starting today, City staff are working to contact property owners by telephone, and notices will be hand delivered to the new list of at-risk properties.
Citizens can also search their addresses on the City’s Electronic Citizens' Information Service - e-CIS - on the website at Winnipeg.ca to find out whether or not their property is currently identified as being at an increased risk of the City's portion of the water pipe freezing.
While the number of new reports of frozen pipes has been gradually decreasing over the past week, City staff continue to monitor the situation and identify properties in need of preventative action. With temperatures still below seasonal average, monitoring and prevention are essential to minimize reports of new interruptions in water service.
To prevent the water pipe from freezing and interrupting water service, citizens who receive a call and a notice are being asked to start leaving one cold water tap running at a trickle (about the amount of a drinking straw) all the time. Those water pipes at risk of freezing will remain vulnerable over the next few months. It will be at least May or June before the frost, which is currently at an average of about seven to eight feet deep below pavement surfaces, is out of the ground.
A total of 7,248 properties have now been proactively advised to take this preventative measure to prevent the City’s portion of the water pipe from freezing.
If property owners do not receive a notice from the City of Winnipeg, it is important that they do not leave their water running due to operational risks that such an action could have on our water and sewer systems (e.g., sewer backup, basement flooding, sewage treatment plant upset).
This winter there has been a sudden and dramatic increase in frozen water pipes due to prolonged periods of frigid temperatures and deeper-than-usual frost penetration into the ground. This is the second coldest winter in 75 years and the frost is currently at an average of about seven to eight feet deep below pavement surfaces.
For more information about frozen pipes, please visit winnipeg.ca/frozenpipes