By Chad Klassen

Barnhartvale residents tired of dealing with water main issues, flooding

Apr 24, 2018 | 4:55 PM

KAMLOOPS — The weather is warming and flooding season is upon us, but up in Barnhartvale residents there are dealing with a different kind of flooding – from water main bursts that are causing huge headaches for everyone.

Nora and Bob Moonie have been dealing with water issues since last spring. One incident after another, including the most recent water main burst that occurred outside their home on Norland Drive, flooding parts of their basement earlier this month.

“There is water in the neighbourhood that is running below ground. We need the city to check their water lines up from us, uphill,” says Norma Moonie. 

The Moonie’s say the water main burst on Norland Drive happened around April 5 right in front of their driveway, causing water to flow down into the basement through the garage. They plan on replacing the original carpet, but are waiting in case another incident happens, which they say is a very real possibility. 

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“I’m afraid the city won’t do its job and fix the problem,” says Bob Moonie. “It’s obvious there’s a problem, but they’ve got their head in the sand and just not solving the problem. There’s been a problem with numerous houses on the street now.”

Other neighbours along Norland Drive know the problems and are being proactive themselves with many replacing their water lines to prevent any potential issues.

CFJC Today reached out to the City of Kamloops, but utilities manager Greg Wightman says the city cannot talk about the water main issues on Norland Drive because one of the neighbours has a lawsuit against them.

For Barnhartvale resident Steve Senger, who lives next door to the Moonie’s, he’s had issues for the last year as well, starting with this water main shut off on his front lawn that started leaking last spring, causing damage to his property and others in Barnhartvale. 

“They seem to be passing the buck somewhat,” Senger notes. “But in the same boat, they’re looking a lot more into it now, now that a few houses have flooded. Prior to that, they sloughed it off and didn’t really, in my opinion and the opinion of others, look into it strongly enough.”

senger wants the city to take the water issues in the neighbourhood seriously — something he feels they haven’t done to this point. 

“I would just like to see, maybe dig up some of the water mains and check them and make sure they’re safe, make sure they’re not going to fail catastrophically,” says Senger. 

For the Moonie’s, they just want the problems fixed so they can enjoy their retirement.

“It’s harmful to our homes, and we feel what’s going to happen is our area is going to be red-flagged for insurance coverage, for real estate coverage, and the city needs to do something,” Nora says.