§ MR. KENYON (Denbigh, &c.)asked the President of the Local Government Board, Whether his attention has been called to the account of the bursting of one of the large pipes in the aqueduct of the Liverpool Corporation Waterworks Company, at Peny-bont-fawr, at the exit of the Hirnant Tunnel, by which considerable damage was done to adjacent property; whether he has any information as to the pressure of the water at the point where the accident occurred; what will be the average pressure along the line of pipes when the works are complete; and, whether there are any clauses in the Act providing for possible damage in the future?
§ THE PRESIDENT (Mr. RITCHIE) (Tower Hamlets, St. George's)I am informed that the newspaper account as to the bursting of a pipe at Peny-bont-fawr is inaccurate, and that the amount of the damage caused is probably about £40. The pressure at the point of fracture was about 130 feet. The average pressure of the aqueduct would be 220 feet. I understand that there was nothing exceptional in the bursting, which occurred in the testing of the pipes when they were first filled, the testing being for the purpose of detecting defects. Pipes in other parts of the aqueduct were subjected to 300 feet pressure, and remained quite sound. The works are being constructed under the provisions of the Liverpool Corporation Water Works Act, 1880, which contains no special provision as to damages.