A local State of Emergency has been declared in the Town of Leader. In a press release, Chief Administrative Officer Erin Romanuik for Leader issued the following.

"The Town of Leader has declared a State of Local Emergency, under Section 20 of The Emergency Planning Act, in response to low water levels of the South Saskatchewan River preventing water flow into the Municipalities intake pipe.

Through declaration of a State of Emergency, the Town of Leader will be able to install urgent pumping equipment at the river intake site within the regulations of the Water Security Agency and create awareness, within the province, of the effect the drought and other projects diverting water from the river have had on the Town’s drinking water supply.

“We have had several conversations with the Water Security Agency in the previous months in regards to the low water levels and flow rates at our Municipal Water Intake Site,” said Mayor Aaron Wenzel. “As this has been an ongoing concern, the Town has provisions in place to minimize any service disruptions for our residents and water users.”

Public Works and Administrative staff are working on securing pumping equipment and supplies, while meeting with Council, the Water Security Agency and other levels of Government. Please be assured that the Town and these partners are working together to execute the work in a timely and effective manner."

Residents are encouraged to be more aware of their daily usage but are not being restricted at this time.

Updates can be found on the Town of Leader's website.

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