the additional storage provided by Tai Lam Chung Reservoir. The installations were therefore dismantled and the pumps installed at Tsuen Wan and the Rumsey Street (salt water for fire fighting) Pumping Stations.
Rainfall
308. The rainfall for the year recorded by the Royal Observatory was 118.03 inches. This is 33.29 inches more than the average of 84.74 inches, and compares with an average of 117.48 inches recorded during the year by the raingauges in the various Waterworks catchment areas.
Storage
309. The following table gives details of storage in the impounding reservoirs:
Date Storage in Million Gallons Remarks April 1st, 1957 2,897.05 Including 1,197.23 M.G. in Tai Lam Chung May 7th, 1957 2,317.26 Minimum October 5th, 1957... 9,517.82 Including 1,699.80 M.G. in Tai Lam Chung April 1st, 1958 4,584.30 Maximum310. There were altogether seventeen days when all reservoirs, with the exception of Tai Lam Chung, overflowed to waste simultaneously.
Consumption
311. The urban areas were supplied with 18,651 million gallons of water and the New Territories villages with a further 500 million gallons, an increase of 6,643 and forty-seven million gallons respectively over the previous year. The total number of hours of supply throughout the year amounted to 5,078.5 as compared with 1,709.5 hours in 1956/57, being an average of 13.9 hours per day, compared with 4.6 hours per day.
312. A maximum consumption of 73.08 million gallons, the highest ever recorded, occurred on 28th July when the Colony was receiving a full supply.
Distribution
313. Due to the generally extended hours of supply, the usual difficulties experienced in providing a reasonably equitable distribution of water were not so evident. However, to effect general improvement,
50
Page 60
Page 61