Media Statement: Update on Situation at Lift Station 10 & State of Emergency (November 10, 2024)

The Town of Paradise today (November 10) provided an update on the situation at Lift Station 10 and the associated State of Emergency. We understand and share the frustration of residents. It has been a difficult situation for all involved. 

When crews detected the issue during the regular check of the station on November 1, they determined that the two pumps had malfunctioned. Throughout the past week and on-going this weekend, the Town’s Public Works Department are working to maintain the flows at the facility while the Infrastructure and Engineering Department are working to determine the cause of the equipment malfunction. 

The type and size of external pump needed to support Lift Station 10 is not available within the province and one is being shipped in on priority status. It is expected to be on site Tuesday (November 12). With an external pump, crews will be able to create a complete bypass of the system which will reduce the number of pumper trucks required. A limited number of pumper trucks will remain on site as a contingency to the bypass as crews work to repair Lift Station 10.

Once the system bypass is in place and supporting the levels at the lift station, we will be able to lift the State of Emergency for the affected area. Crews will continue to work on resolving the issues at the facility and on completing repairs. 

We understand the inconvenience our residents are facing, especially those living near the site who are impacted by the constant equipment noise. We want to ease the noise and other inconveniences as soon as we can and crews are focused on doing that. We continue to ask residents in the affected area to reduce the amount of water going down the drain (limit flushing toilets, using washing machines, and running dishwashers) as this supports work on-going at the Lift Station 10 site. We thank residents for their cooperation and understanding. We also thank our crews who have been working continuously since this issue was detected. 

The age, capacity, and needed upgrades to Lift Station 10 prompted the Town to invest in a new facility. Construction of the new $24million lift station started in January 2023 and it is expected to be operational in Winter 2025. To date, this project is on track and on budget.