BREAKING: Heatwave leads to Athlone water shut offs this weekend

There will further water outages in Athlone this week.

Irish Water this evening confirmed that water will be turned off on the Athlone public water supply scheme from 10pm tonight (Friday) to 6am Saturday and from 10pm Sunday to 6am Monday.

The water utility said it was necessary due to increased water demand which had resulted in a drop in treated water levels in the Annagh Reservoir

It said the shut offs would allow treated water levels in the Annagh Reservoir to recover. This water restriction will impact customers in  Athlone town, Baylin, Mount Temple and the Ories, Garrycastle, Dublin Road, Ardnaglug, Fardrum, Moydrum, Blyry, Killyon Hill, Bonavalley, Athlone and surrounds.

The water supply will restore to customers as the network refills. It can take a number of hours for the water to restore to customers on higher ground or at the end of the network once the water supply is turned back on.

And Irish Water hinted there may be further restrictions ahead when it asked people in this area to conserve water for the foreseeable future .

“The current dry spell and increased seasonal demand are contributing to the reduced available supply of treated drinking water.

“In an effort to minimise potential interruptions, customers are being asked to conserve water by refraining from watering gardens, washing cars, using power hoses and minimising their use generally.

“Every small effort to save water will contribute to maintaining supplies and benefit your entire community by reducing the likelihood of water restrictions.

To help conserve water customers are being asked to report any leaks they see on the public network and to repair any private side leaks in their homes and businesses to help restore water levels in the network.  Customers can report any public side leaks online at www.water.ie or by calling the customer care helpline 24/7 on 1850 278 278.