The City of Owen Sound is seeking the public's assistance in determining the source of a large volume of water usage.

The City's water control system has detected several high flow events; twice on September 10th, twice on September 11th, six times on September 15th, and three times on September 22. The water usage lasts only for 1 to 3 minutes, but the flow rate is equal to many hundreds of gallons a minute; comparable to what would be seen from a flowing fire hydrant.

The events occurred in the southeast corner of the City in the area south of 10th Street East and east of 8th Avenue East. Patrols of the area during, and after the events turned up no evidence of public hydrant usage. The likely source isa private hydrant or building fire connection that cannot be seen from the roadway, or internal usage within a commercial or industrial location.

The concern is not that the usage is illegal or unauthorized, but rather, that rapid high volume usage of the system in this way can cause watermain breaks. The City wishes to contact the water user to discuss ways to reduce that risk.

If you have noticed hydrant usage in the East Hill area on the above-mentioned dates, or if your facility has been using water in this manner, please contact Public Works at 519-376-4274. Your assistance is very much appreciated.

source: media release, City of Owen Sound