Crews unblock intake to Crystal Cascades water treatment plant

Cairns Mayor Terry James has provided an update on the town’s processed water supply after debris blocked the intake to the Crystal Cascades treatment plant. The town was left with only 30 hours of processed water available after devastating flooding brought on by Cyclone Jasper. Mr James revealed that “thankfully” the intake was unblocked on Monday as water was sent to critical infrastructure. “That’s the two hospitals in town, so they have got their water now because we had about 200 renal patients it would have affected greatly,” he told Sky News Australia. Residents are still advised to only use water for emergency purposes. Large parts of the region around Cairns were lashed with more than 300mm of rain over the past 24 hours.