The council leaving residents without water and air-conditioning during heatwave

A Queensland man living through a heatwave fears lives could be lost when his local council cuts water to his street during a two-week maintenance program, limiting access to cooling units.

A notice sent to Mount Isa residents advises maintenance work will require water supply to be switched off for up to six hours a day over the next fortnight.

The disruption period is from 8.30am to 2.30pm daily on Thursday, January 17 until Friday, February 1 with temperatures forecast to reach 42 most days during that period.

“In 48 hours they will turn the water off during the hottest part of the day for the next two weeks,” Urs Mueller told Yahoo 7 News.

Like many of his neighbours, the home Mr Mueller, 62, shares with his 74-year-old wife Heidi in Camooweal Street is fitted with evaporative air-conditioning, which requires a constant source of water to run.

He feared the couple and other residents won’t be able to cool their homes and is concerned for their safety, particularly the elderly and young children.

Mr Mueller said he called the council to ask why the disruption couldn’t be moved to another part of the day, or cooler time of year, but was told there was nothing that could be done.

“Is this council trying to kill us?” he asked.

“What happens if a fire starts outside or in the kitchen? We can’t get a hose to put it out.

“I pay my rates… I don’t want to die at home in a hot house.”

Mt Isa Council confirms maintenance work to go ahead

According to the disruption notice: “Council regrets any inconvenience that these necessary works may cause and every effort will be made to ensure that disruption is minimised.”

If the heat becomes too unbearable to stay at home, Mr Mueller told Yahoo 7 News he planned to rally his neighbours and sit in the air-conditioned council offices in protest.

In a statement, Mount Isa Council said approximately 30 residences will be affected by the outage along the 2.5km road, and insisted the disruption would not last for the full six hours per
day.

“I can assure you that no property will have water shutdown for 6 hours per day for two weeks, however we have given each property an indication of the timings of the scheduled works and will be keeping in communication with any property should we require the disruption of water service,” a spokesperson said.

The maintenance work is a “city-wide, long-term initiative that will allow for better distribution and flow of this precious resource”, council said, adding that work crews will notify residents when the outage is expected to last for more than two hours.

“It is unlikely that any property will experience loss of water for the full duration of these hours,” the statement read.

Mount Isa Council did not respond to questions regarding why the work is being conducted during a heatwave, or offer advice for residents who may be left without water access during the extreme heat.

Residents with further concerns can contact Mount Isa Council on (07) 4747 3200.

Stay up to date with the latest news with Yahoo7’s daily newsletter. Sign up here.