PUTRAJAYA, DEC 20: Avoid ‘panic storing’ of water so as not to affect the full restoration of water supply following Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s (TNB) maintenance work at the Bukit Badong Main Substation (PMU) in Kuala Selangor.
Energy, Green Technology and Water Ministry (KeTTHA) Secretary General Datuk Seri Dr Zaini Ujang said the water disruption in Petaling Jaya, Shah Alam, Gombak, Kuala Langat, Hulu Selangor, Kuala Selangor and Kuala Lumpur is expected to be fully restored by Friday, December 23.
In order to ensure full supply as scheduled, consumers are advised to not store water in a panicky way, or which exceeds usual requirements, he said.
“Don’t deviate from the normal requirement. When a household usually uses 1 cubic metre of water, don’t store 3 cubic metres when water supply is disrupted.
“This is called ‘panic storing’. Actually, there is water (during disruption), it is merely limited,” he said as reported by BERNAMA.
Over 3.8 million consumers in 814 areas in Lembah Klang began experiencing disruption in water supply today following preventive maintenance work and the installation of the arc protective system at the Kuala Selangor PMU.
Zaini explained that when ‘panic storing’ occurs, water in pipes and treatment plants will run out. Hence more time will be required for consumers to get water in their homes when supply is restored.
He said that usually during ‘downtime’ of a main treatment plant, areas at the end of the supply system and on higher ground, will experience a longer disruption period.
“This is because a sufficient amount of water is needed for the distribution system to function as usual in cases where reserve margin is at a low of merely 2% to 3%,” he said.
Zaini said Syarikat Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd has prepared 64 water tank lorries to supply water to affected consumers, especially in the event of gatherings and emergencies.
When asked regarding the decision not to postpone the TNB maintenance work to another date, he replied that December 19 was the date chosen after taking into account several factors including Langat Water Treatment Plant downtime on December 6, and the fact that important school exams are no longer in session.
“Another factor is that, water consumption per capita is the lowest at year end compared to other months,” he explained.
“Based on TNB’s close monitoring on the PMU system in Bukit Badong, KeTTHA decided that TNB preventive maintenance work must be done soonest to reduce the risk of a more serious unscheduled power outage,” he said.
Water: Avoid ‘panic storing’
