Two things kept Ottawa city water flowing during the power outages last week. Emergency generators powered two wells and some water pumps. And the water is stored high in the air in towers.
City Engineer Tom Duttlinger says the electric pumps get the water out of the ground in the first place. The weight of the water aloft provides the water pressure that makes it flow when you turn the tap. Without electricity, the city would have been okay for a while.
Duttlinger says the city’s water system wasn’t disturbed at all by the power outage.