Calgary's Mayor Jeromy Farkas asked business owners on Tuesday to allow employees who can work from home to do so, as the city deals with the repercussions of the latest water main break. "We need your URGENT help to buy a little more time for the repair," wrote Farkas in an X post on Tuesday. "Please do everything you can to conserve. The City has asked employees who can to work from home. Employers, please do the same to help reduce strain on our system."This call comes after the city's water usage rose for a fourth consecutive day on Monday. Calgarians used 514 million litres of water on Monday, which the city has categorized as an "unstable" level, well above the "stable" level of 485 million litres. .City officials asked Calgarians on Monday to be more diligent about conserving water, as current daily usage leaves little to no room for error. "We are working very hard to keep it running at this capacity, but if there are any mechanical or other issues, it will have a serious impact on our water supply," said Michael Thompson, General Manager of Infastructer Services for the City of Calgary.A single fire can require 4.5 million litres of water, the same amount used by 26,000 individuals in a day. This puts individuals at risk, as Calagrians' high usage of a limited supply could limit the ability of the fire department to function. As a result, the city remains under a Stage 4 water restriction. While officials have issued a blanket call to conserve water, they have also shared a series of specific requests. .The City of Calgary posted on X on Tuesday morning, announcing that the new section of pipe needed to repair the break had been delivered to the site. Repairs to the broken section of the Bearspaw South Feeder Main could be completed by next week. .Despite the apparent good news about repairs, city officials have warned that completion does not mean Calgarians will not have to worry about another break in the near future."The pipe is failing because it is breaking down from the inside," Farkas said. "That damage cannot be fixed. It will never be fixed. This pipe cannot be made safe with patches. It has reached the end of its life, and until it is fully replaced, it can fail again without warning."The city council announced in December that it is moving forward with a project to replace the faulty line. Still, construction of the new pipe will not be completed until 2028, and the city will likely face additional disruptions until then."In simple terms, we're transplanting Calgary's beating heart. We're replacing the engine of the aircraft while in mid-flight," Farkas said."But until that work is done, we need to change how we think about water, not for a few days, not only during emergencies, for a while, this is how life will be.".This break on the Bearspaw South Main Feeder line was the second break along the line in under two years, following a June 2024 incident that left reprocussions throughout that summer.Farkas also announced that the city council will receive a copy of an independent report on Tuesday evening, which investigates the June 2024 break along the Bearspaw line, and that the full document will be made public following a Special Meeting of Council at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. .No press conference has been anounced for Tuesday, however the city said in a statement on Monday that "More updates will be shared as information becomes available."
