Residents in parts of Nairobi are set to experience water supply interruptions after the Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company announced a scheduled shutdown of the Sasumua Water Treatment Plant for emergency repairs. In a notice issued on Thursday, September 10, Nairobi Water said the shutdown will facilitate repair works along the Sasumua-Kabete pipeline. The interruption is scheduled to begin at 6:00 a.m. on Friday, September 11, and run until 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 12, representing approximately 26 hours. The company has advised residents, businesses and institutions in affected areas to make arrangements for adequate water supplies before the shutdown begins.

Nairobi Water said the temporary shutdown is necessary to allow its teams to undertake emergency repair works on the pipeline connecting the Sasumua system to Kabete. The company did not indicate that the interruption was linked to a permanent change in the city’s water supply. The shutdown is instead intended to allow repair work to be completed before the treatment plant resumes operations. Residents who depend on the affected network have been advised to store enough water ahead of the scheduled shutdown and plan for the period when normal supply will be unavailable. Nairobi Water maintains an online programme showing supply schedules for different parts of the city, reflecting the fact that water is not continuously supplied to all areas. The Sasumua water system is one of Nairobi’s key water sources. Nairobi City Water and Sewerage Company says Sasumua is located in Njambini, Nyandarua County, and has a storage capacity of 15.9 million cubic metres. The company lists the design yield of the system at approximately 59,000 cubic metres per day. Water from Sasumua is treated before being conveyed through a roughly 60-kilometre pipeline to Kabete Treatment Works.

Nairobi Water estimates that Sasumua contributes approximately 12 per cent of Nairobi’s current water supply, meaning interruptions at the facility can affect supply in areas connected to the system.

The planned shutdown means households and institutions that rely on Nairobi Water should make arrangements before 6:00 a.m. on Friday. Hospitals, schools, restaurants, businesses and other facilities with high water consumption may also need to put contingency measures in place for the interruption period. Customers should also note that restoration of supply after the shutdown may not necessarily occur simultaneously across all affected areas, as water has to move through the distribution network once production resumes. Nairobi Water has previously carried out emergency repairs on the Sasumua-Kabete pipeline, underscoring the importance of the transmission route to the city’s water network. For now, the company expects the scheduled shutdown to end at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 12, after which water supply will resume as the repaired system is brought back into operation.