It’s been a slow trickle of information at a downtown Victoria condo building, but the water situation is getting clearer at Hudson House.
Last Saturday, the water was cut off unexpectedly, then the next day an advisory was posted asking residents to run their faucets to clear out any possible sediment.
“It was brown,” says resident Carlie Pennington.
A notice was then posted by building management, advising people living in the building to boil water for three minutes after filtering it. The building also offered refilling stations in the gym, but Pennington says the notice came too late.
“I was violently sick at work,” she says.
Hudson House management says the water was tested on Wednesday, April 17, and that results were expected back in a week. Fast forward to Friday, April 26, and residents still hadn’t heard whether the water is safe to drink.
“It’s not cloudy anymore, but as far as the eye can see and what’s actually in it, we’re kind of playing water roulette” says Scott Ste Marie.
Resident AJ Rajkumar is playing it safe by drinking only bottled water, and expected clearer lines of communication.
“I’m not sure how long the testing was supposed to take, but I feel there should have been some news on it by now,” he says.
Townline issued a statement late Friday afternoon to CHEK News, saying that the disruption in water service and the subsequent sediment was from the repair of a failed pump in the building.
The statement reads, in part, “Despite being informed by a mechanical contractor that there were no issues with the water after an additional system clear-out, we sent a water sample for testing, and we expect results imminently. We will be in ongoing communications with residents to determine ways in which we can support them further.”
Absolute clarity on the situation is just around the corner, but Rajkumar says a lack of information leaves a bitter aftertaste.
“I guess I had higher expectations for my amenities here.”
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Jordan Cunningham
