Citizens in Kerala’s Chalakkudy were surprised on Monday when a mixture of alcohol and water started flowing out of their taps. A total of 18 households were affected due to this event as they did not get clean water to drink.
Alcohol flowing from the tap
Families residing in Solomon’s Avenue Flat in Kerala’s Chalakkudy were surprised to find out that a foul-smelling mixture of alcohol and water was flowing out of their taps. Usually, all of their homes draw water from the same neighborhood well.
Joshy Maliyekkal, who is a resident in the building, says he felt the alcohol smell when he switched on a motor to fill a water tank outside his home. “In a surprise to me, the pipe started to smell very awful. We were wondering as to why such a smell was coming from the water pulled from an open well,” he said.
Along with him, eighteen families reported this incident to local authorities on Monday. According to Joshy the locals have been using the well for years and have never had this type of issue.
Mystery solved
On the same day, the authorities visited the apartment and had looked into the situation. Later they found out that the well had been spoiled by a dumping pit filled with illegal alcohol.
These alcohols are been reported to be seized from a bar approximately six years ago. After the dumping, the alcohol got mixed with the soil and even leaked into the apartment’s well. As a result, 20,000 liters of drinking water got mixed with alcohol and ultimately received by 18 families in their household taps.
According to the authorities, there was a bar next to the building which was shut down nearly six years ago. The place was closed after being charged with illegally storing 6,000 liters of liquor.
Later, their stock was seized and the excise department completed the formalities of disposing of the liquor by emitting it into a pit dug close to the Solomon’s Avenue Apartment.
Following this incident, 5000 liters of drinking water was supplied in tankers to the apartment. This exercise was followed on Tuesday as well with water being supplied by the municipality in the morning and evening. In the meantime, the officials have been draining out water from the open well and cleaning it.
“A separate tank has been given to us and 2 lines of water connection have been delivered to our apartment. However, the whole event was very sickening for us. My children did not go to school for two days. We were using mineral water cans the whole of Sunday,” Joshy said.
