Jail warden hopes water supply is restored today

CEBU, Philippines - Water supply at the Cebu City Jail is expected to be restored today almost a week after the facility experienced problem when its water pump conked out on March 12.

Vice Mayor Edgar Labella has requested assistance from the Bureau of Fire Protection-7 and Metropolitan Cebu Water District to temporarily provide water supply to the jail facility in Barangay Kalunasan.

“They told me that it would be fixed in three days time but I think it is more than three days. Hopefully by tomorrow (March 18), according to Supt. (Johnson) Calub, it will already be fixed,” said Labella, who visited the facility on Friday.

BFP-7 sent two trucks with tanks of water for some days’ use of nearly 2,000 inmates while MCWD gave some supply of potable water.

Calub, the city jail warden, hopes that water supply will already be restored today, especially that it is already summer when scarcity of water has always been experienced at the facility.

“Gi-anticipate namo na mahitabo na ang paghinay sa tubig during summer,” he said.

Calub said they sought help from the city to request the needed supply of water from BFP and MCWD until such time that their water system is restored.

The situation is now manageable with the assistance extended by many government sectors, said Calub.

According to the jail warden, they noticed that for some time, the water production inside the facility has weakened.

They did an inspection at the facility’s water source inside the Department of Environment and Natural Resources compound in Barangay Sudlon and found out there was a problem on the submersible water pump, which already needed replacement after 10 years of being used, he said.

Calub said they needed to pull up 22 pipes, which measured 20 feet each, to take the submersible water pump for assessment.

Their office bought a new equipment, which cost P80,000, for its replacement.

“Nakapalit na og water pump. Ganina, after lunch, nataud na ang new submersible pump, gibalik na pud ang mga tubo,” he said.

The water pump repair has started March 14.

“Ni-promise ang mga nag-ayo nga by tomorrow, at 2 p.m. mabalik na, ma-restore na ang water system,” said Calub. – (FREEMAN)