Thanks to the quick thinking and professional efforts of Council's water team and contractors, a major equipment failure at the Cooma Water Treatment Plant on Sunday has avoided any impact on Cooma's drinking water supply.
On Sunday 20 August 2023, one of the plant's primary delivery pumps developed a sudden and serious leak, which caused major damage to the electrical infrastructure delivering power to the plant's pumps.
The issue was noticed first thing on Sunday morning thanks to the diligence of Council's operators, and the strict processes in place to protect drinking water supply in our towns and villages.
Working immediately with Essential Energy and specialist electrical contractors, the damage was assessed, the site made safe, and a backup diesel-powered pump sourced from the Hunter region.
With the remaining plant pumps returned to operation with the diesel-powered pump running as a backup, water supply to the Cooma region was unaffected – despite the seriousness of the equipment failure and damage.
Council is deeply grateful to our water team, contractors, and local industry partners who reduced their water usage while the pumping system was out of action.
The diesel-powered pump will be available on short notice as a contingency for any future outages or equipment failures. Full repair of the damaged electrical components will be made in the coming weeks.
