CANMORE – A broken water valve casing in front of the Canmore General Hospital will finally be fixed, nearly 10 months after it was first damaged.
Drew Keoughan, an area resident, said he hit the broken valve casing with his car in late September damaging one of his tires.
“It’s sticking three inches out of the ground and it has a chip out of it, so it wrecks people’s tires,” said Keoughan, expressing his frustration that it’s taken this long to fix.
For months he said EPCOR was using a pylon to alert drivers of the hazard, however, the pylon would regularly go missing leaving the damaged casing exposed to unsuspecting drivers.
“Once it froze over there was enough ice on it, which was fine, but once the ice started melting again that’s when they started putting the pylon on it again.”
EPCOR, which is responsible for the Town’s water supply, said the valve casing was hit by a grader causing it to break and was working to expedite the repair.
“While we were initially using pylons to alert motorists of the casing, we have now worked with the Town to have barricades placed around it,” wrote Kevin Visser, senior manager of regional operations for the company.
He said the company recently conducted an inspection of valve casings throughout town and has reached out to local contractors for quotes to repair them.
As of press time, the valve casing had been cut flush with the road, however, a pylon remained on top of the exposed hole.
Chantale Blais, a municipal engineer for the town, said she was also aware of the issue and was working with EPCOR to find a solution.
For Keoughan, the broken casing is just the latest example of the crumbling roads and infrastructure in TeePee Town.
“It’s just been getting worse,” said Keoughan, “They haven’t done anything to the roads in the 11 years I’ve lived here. If you have a car that isn’t brand new with really good suspension you’re going to bottom out.”
Residents who encounter a hazard on a road or sidewalk are encouraged to report the issue by visiting the Town’s website and using its Report a Pothole tool.
