From Victor Edozie, in Port Harcourt
The newly constructed Gwara station overhead tank in Khana local government area of Rivers State constructed by the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP), has collapsed 4 days after it was commissioned by the officials of federal ministry of environment.
The cause of the incident which occurred on Tuesday could not be ascertained but community sources attributed the incident to sub standard materials used in the construction of the tank.
The overhead tank was to provide portable water to residents of the area whose source of drinking water were polluted by environmental pollution.
In the meantime the management of HYPREP said it has constituted a high level committee to immediately visit the site and investigate the cause of the overhead tank collapse in Gwara.
Professor Nenibarini Zabbey the Project Coordinator of HYPREP in a statement in Port Harcourt on Wednesday said it’s deeply disturbed by the collapse of the overhead tank at the newly commissioned Gwara Water Station in Khana LGA.
Professor Nenibarini Zabbey, said HYPREP has constituted a high level committee to immediately visit the site and commence investigation into the immediate and remote cause of this unfortunate incident.
He said the Committee has visited the site and will be painstaking in its investigation to establish likely structural failure or third-party interference.
He further empathises with the Gwara community and asks for calm as steps are being taken to ensure that the damaged facility is being restored, and water reticulated to affected communities
“HYPREP remains committed to continue to deliver quality projects that meet best standards. It has introduced both internal and external measures to ensure quality assurance and control. This includes the engagement of a Project Consultant, EcoProject, supervision from the Monitoring and Evaluation Unit and Water Supervisors among others
“But for this isolated case, 16 Water Stations have been commissioned, supplying water to over 40 communities. Some of them have been running for over 2 years.
“More so, robust sustainability plans are being adopted to ensure the water projects continue to serve communities. They are the constitution of the Water Consumers Association (WCA), construction of solar farms for alternative power supply and training of laboratory staff. One of the unique features of the HYPREP Water Project is the laboratory to ensure that water supplied to communities meets the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) standard,” the statement added.
