Officials said yesterday that up to 4,000 households were left without water at the weekend because of an automatic shutdown at a dam in Co Donegal.
Homes in parts of the Inishowen peninsula had no supply during Sunday’s hot weather and yesterday, due to a fault at Eddie Fullerton Dam near Buncrana.
Donegal County Council senior engineer Pat Gillespie said the dam automatically shut itself down when a fault occurred during the chemical cleansing process. He said the supply of a chemical used to gather peat, soil and sediment from the water stopped about midday on Sunday. The dam then shut down as part of its safety mechanisms.
Areas affected included Dunree, Buncrana, Fahan, Burnfoot and Newtowncunningham.