An electrical injury at F.E. Holliday Water Treatment Plant has shut down the plant and sent two contractors working there to hospital.
North Battleford's water supply has also been curtailed because of the incident, with the City issuing a reduce-water advisory.
That advisory remains in effect until further notice due to the shutdown of the Holliday facility. The city stresses that the quality of the water has not been compromised in their media release.
The incident happened at the plant shortly before noon Monday. According to City Manager Jim Toye, the contractors from Saskatoon were working with an electrical panel at the plant.
"There was an issue with an arcing situation", Toye said Monday night.
Both men were transported to Battlefords Union Hospital. Since then, one man has been released, while the other was transported to the burn unit at Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon for further evaluation and treatment.
When the arcing happened, power to the facility was shut down due to a complete loss of electricity, and it was unable to produce water. Toye said it was his understanding that a brownout situation happened in parts of the city, not affecting City facilities.
Immediately after the incident, investigators were called in.
"Occupational Health and Safety was called in from Saskatoon and did an investigation," said Toye.
After the OHS investigation, the City was able to start working with a local contractor to estimate the damage and the parts that need to be replaced.
"It needs that panel to be able to operate," Toye said.
Finding the right parts for the F.E. Holliday facility poses somewhat of a challenge. Toye told reporters the parts may have to come from the United States, and that may affect how quickly the plant gets back up and running.
That could take a couple of days. If the parts could be found in Saskatchewan or Canada, the problem could be fixed in a day, Toye said.
The City is looking at "alternative sources and innovative ways we can get electricity back" to the plant so it can get back up and operating as soon as possible, Toye said.
Water Treatment Plant No. 1 was not affected and took over the rest of the water supply load while F.E. Holliday was shut down. Toye said Plant No. 1 was perfectly capable of handling the load at this time, but is still urging people to "use common sense" and not overuse the water while F. E. Holliday is shut down.
The City issued an advisory to residents to reduce water usage until the issue is resolved, with the advisory remaining in effect until further notice.
Toye also reassured residents that "the water in the city has never been compromised in any way," as No. 1 plant is able to handle the loads in the winter months.
The F.E. Holliday water treatment plant is the secondary water plant for North Battleford and uses a surface water supply. Water Treatment Plant No.1, relies on ground water.
The incident hitting North Battleford follows closely on the heels of the situation last week at Regina's Buffalo Pound water plant, when the water treatment facility there shut down last Thursday due to a shorting-out of electrical equipment. Advisories were sent to Regina and Moose Jaw residents to curtail water use there before the problem was resolved later the following day.
