“We are doing everything possible to mitigate the effects of this incident and the rain and maintain essential services,” says Orillia Mayor Don McIsaac. “I want to be clear. Our drinking water is not impacted. This impacts our wastewater operations only. We appreciate the community’s patience as our crews work around the clock to restore operations.”
The City of Orillia is responding to the impacts of a fire that occurred late last night at the Orillia Wastewater Treatment Centre, which has significantly impacted operations at the facility. City staff and emergency services responded swiftly to the incident, when the secondary digester was struck by lightning, and the fire has since been extinguished. There were no reported injuries. However, the damage sustained has affected the normal operation of wastewater treatment systems, which are currently not operating at full capacity.
Additionally, heavy rains of more than 50 mm in a short period of time overnight have also strained the system. Water levels have exceeded the optimal operation levels for the wastewater system. The city is reassuring all residents that this incident does not affect the municipal drinking water supply. This is a wastewater system issue, related to sewage and drainage, not the drinking water system.
Residents can continue to:
- Drink tap water
- Bathe and shower
- Use water for cooking, handwashing, and daily needs
There is no boil water advisory in effect, and no risk to the safety of the City’s drinking water.
To help reduce strain on the wastewater system while emergency repairs are underway, all residents are asked to reduce water use as much as possible, including:
- Postponing laundry and dishwashing
- Taking shorter showers
- Flushing toilets only when necessary
- Avoiding draining large amounts of water at once (e.g., bathtubs)
The City has implemented emergency protocols and is actively working to manage the situation. This includes hauling sewage to alternate facilities and using all available system redundancies to reduce impacts. Despite these efforts, some backup is occurring, and residents may have back ups, odours or slower drainage in some areas.
Please report sewer backups or related issues to the City immediately by calling 705-329-7249.
Orillia remains in a state of emergency after the weekend ice storm and thousands are still without power. Yesterday, the OPP asked non-residents to avoid the city so that all resources can be directed to recovery.
The city is also reminding residents that the Salvation Army food truck stationed at the Orillia Recreation Centre is intended specifically for individuals and families who are without power and in need of immediate assistance. The city says some individuals are accessing this service who may not require it and is asking everyone to respect the purpose of this emergency resource so it can support those who need it most.
The Ontario government continues to provide support to impacted communities across the province. Emergency management personnel and Ontario Corps partners are working in areas hardest hit by the storm, including where critical infrastructure is most impacted. Teams are cleaning up debris, conducting wellness checks on residents, delivering food and water, and setting up warming stations.
