An aerial view of the collapsed high-level storage tank.

SARIKEI: Villagers in Pulau Bruit near here will be able to enjoy treated water this Hari Raya Aidilfitri despite the untimely collapse of the under-construction high-level storage tank in Kampung Penipah on Monday.

The 1.6-million litre high-level storage tank was a component of the RM54.5 million Rural Water Supply project to villagers in northern Pulau Bruit, Tanjung Manis MP Datuk Norah Tun Rahman told reporters after she was updated on the status of the project by the manager of Public Works Department (central region) John Aten and the contractor at the project site yesterday.

Norah said the JKR officer and contractor had assured villagers in Tekajong, Bruit and Penipah that they would still be able to enjoy the water supply while waiting for the reconstruction of high-level storage tank.

“As an alternative, the water supply to these villages would be pumped directly from the Sebako booster station,” she said.

The workers were presently in the process of flushing out the water to clean the pipe before the commissioning of water supply to the villages, she added.

As according to the JKR officer there were certain areas not covered by the contract which denied them from enjoying the water supply.

Norah advised the affected villagers to submit their request through Mukah District Office as soon as possible.

She also called on the villagers to continue working together with the government to ensure an interrupted flow of development projects to their areas.