Water supply to Kenya’s capital, Nairobi, has been shut down following damage of the pipes supplying the Central Business District.
In a notice on Wednesday, Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company (NCWSC) said the damage of the pipes was due to the ongoing construction of the Nairobi Express Way being undertaken by China Road and Bridge Corporation.
“The line has been shut to pave way for repairs. Bear with us as we work to restore supply in the shortest time possible,” NWSC said in a statement.
The construction works on the Nairobi Expressway has, on several occasions, interrupted the water supply in Nairobi.
The water supply pipeline along the busy highway was shut to facilitate interconnection of the relocated pipeline and enable the release of the Mombasa road median to the contractor to proceed with the pending construction.
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Earlier, the water company said the relocation of water pipes is at 90 per cent thus causing the water supply interruption but assured that once the relocation is complete normal supply would be restored.
Meanwhile, the Nairobi Metropolitan Service (NMS) is planning to connect homes in informal settlements with piped borehole water. NMS has announced that 193 boreholes in the slums will be integrated into the water supply system which will be managed by Athi Water Works and Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company.
“Nairobi Water and Athi Water works will take over running of the 193 boreholes after NMS exits. They will be expected to provide piped water to residents in informal settlements albeit at subsidized rates,” NMS Director General Mohammed Badi said.
The boreholes have been drilled by NMS in partnership with Athi Water Works at a cost of about US $16 million.
According to NMS, at least 2 million city residents in the informal settlements are already benefiting from the 193 boreholes already dug. They will supply more than 40 million litres of water.
