Decision on easing water restrictions to come Monday, says city official

The City of Calgary'sdirector of capital priorities and investment, Francois Bouchart, says that over the weekend officialswilldiscuss easing water restrictions down to Stage 2, and a final decision will come on Monday.

As of Friday afternoon, Calgary remains underStage 3restrictions as crews monitor how the city's watersystem will respond to the easing of conservation measures.

Bouchartrepeated on Friday thatCalgary's distribution system would beable to meet the water demand as long as Stage 3 outdoor restrictions remain in place.

"I want to reiterate that we are moving cautiously so that we don't set back our progress," he said, adding thatthe city will consider the pipe's condition and what impact adding more pressure and increasing flow would have.

"By Monday, we will be making a decision and will share more information of what it means for water restrictions."

WATCH | City officials to provide regular 2 p.m. water updates moving forward:

City provides update on water main break

3 months ago

Duration 5:25

City officials provide update on the major feeder main break affecting Calgary's water supply.

Earlier this week, the city announced that all outdoor pools areexempt from the ongoingoutdoor water restrictions in order to provide people with some options for relief from the heat.

The City of Calgary has been gradually lifting restrictions on water use,though officials continue tourgeresidents to ease back into their regular water-use habits as crewswork to fully stabilize the system.

No new wire snaps discovered as of Friday

Water usage decreased on Thursday, as residents used 565 million litres, down from Wednesday's 567-million-litre peak.

City officials saythe Bearspawsouth feeder main which ruptured on June 5 is still operating at only 55per cent capacity.

On Thursday, Bouchart alsosaidthat monitoring devices along the Bearspaw south feeder main detected another new wire snap in the pipe since easing restrictions, which makes three wires in totalthat have snapped.

"Yesterday, we shared that our monitors had detected one additional wire snap in the feeder main, bringing the total to three since Sunday," said Bouchart during his Friday afternoon update.

"While this is not a sign of an imminent break in the feeder main, it is an indicator that the pipe is under some stress."

As of Friday afternoon, no new wire snaps have been detected, according to the city, but crews continue to monitor the pipe. Bouchart says the data collected from the PipeDiver device that has been deployed is expected to be available later this month.