Beaumont asks locals to stop non

Central Alberta municipalities order stop of non-essential water use as rain overwhelms wastewater systems

Officials ask locals to refrain from showering, flushing toilets

Officials of some Central Alberta communities have issued water supply advisories after heavy rainfall pushed local wastewater systems to capacity.

Residents of Beaumont, Leduc County and St. Albert are urged to cease all non-essential water use immediately until further notice and to refrain from showering, flushing toilets and using laundry machines and dishwashers.

Localized flooding and backups have been reported to city officials, the alerts say.

"If the wastewater system continues to operate over-capacity, flooding and sewer backups will continue to increase," the advisories read.

The advisories from the cities of Beaumont and St. Albert came after Environment Canada issued a heavy rainfall warning for the Edmonton region.

On Friday, the agency said rainfall is expected to taper off on Sunday, though between 50 millimetres and 90 millimetres of rain were predicted to fall over the weekend.