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SLD to the Rescue As Fractured Water Main Floods Roads and Businesses in East London

LONDON, 16 April 2019 — An emergency call-out in the middle of the night following a burst water-main in East London resulted in a rapid mass deployment of SLD pumps from branches across the capital. SLD Pumps & Power is a trading division of Carrier Rental Systems UK Ltd, part of Carrier, a leading global provider of innovative heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC), refrigeration, fire, security and building automation technologies.

Failure of the 42 inch water main supplying homes and businesses in Hackney led to flooding of an underground car park and surrounding roads, stranding vehicles and bringing traffic to a halt. Around 18 million litres of water engulfed the basement of nearby flats, damaging the existing electrical water pumps due to water ingress.

David Rodgers, SLD’s national account manager who led the response, said: “After receiving the emergency call, we quickly attended the site to assess the situation. Taking into account the extent of flooding and the rate of rise, we were able to determine the temporary pumping capacity required to deal with the problem and provide guidance to the emergency services on how long it would take to clear.”

Water supplies to the area were cut off while the problem was tackled and the source of the leak traced. This resulted in loss of supply to residents and businesses in the area, with temporary water supplies being provided by tanker, underlining the urgent need for rapid resolution of the flood and underlying cause.

SLD deployed a total of 15 high capacity pumps from its branches at Erith in East London, and Heathrow in West London. Equipment consisted of a combination of 6 inch and 8 inch super silent SLD pumps, and 4 inch and 6 inch hydraulic pumps. The SLD hydraulic pumps enabled quick repositioning as the water level receded, ensuring the flood was dealt with quickly.

Water levels in the basements of the residential block were reduced sufficiently after 48 hours to access and inspect the existing water pumps, and enable remedial action to be taken to restore operation. Clean-up operations followed and the area was fully restored within three days. Rodgers said: “It goes without saying that loss of water supplies is not just an inconvenience, but a potential hygiene and health issue. Our key concern was to deal with the flooding as quickly as possible, so that repair work could be carried out on the source of the leak and water supplies restored to homes and businesses as quickly as possible.”

SLD operates a network of branches across the UK, with its fleet of high efficiency pumps and temporary power systems available for rapid deployment 24/7 in response to emergencies or planned maintenance. Its specialists have many years’ experience in dealing with a wide range of domestic, civil and industrial applications across the country.

The burst water main resulted in 18 million litres of water engulfing roads and properties in Hackney, East LondonThe burst water main resulted in 18 million litres of water engulfing roads and properties in Hackney, East Lond

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