Major water outage to hit Prague’s Ďáblice, Prosek neighborhoods

Tens of thousands of customers in northern Prague will lose their water supply from Wednesday evening until Thursday afternoon while crews repair a damaged main, Prague Water Supply and Sewerage Company (PVK) announced.

The outage is scheduled to run from 10 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 21, until 3 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22. It will affect the Ďáblice housing estate, parts of Prosek and the Krocínka area.

PVK said the Prosek Polyclinic would retain its water supply. Residents should check their individual address on the company’s outage map, which also shows replacement drinking-water distribution points.

The problem involves a major water pipe at the junction of Ďáblická and Žernosecká streets in Prague 8.

PVK spokesperson Tomáš Mrázek said the damaged DN 600 pipe is a principal supply line carrying water from nearby reservoirs to several tens of thousands of customers.

Repairing it will require a shutdown lasting approximately 17 hours, spanning Wednesday night and much of Thursday’s working and school day.

The announcement identifies affected neighborhoods rather than suggesting every address in Prosek will lose service. The online map provides the more detailed boundaries residents need to establish whether their building is included.

PVK will provide replacement drinking water throughout the interruption using tankers and bottled water placed in containers. Locations are included on the same map.

Households in the affected area should set aside drinking water before the shutdown and plan for cooking, washing and toilet use overnight and Thursday morning. Businesses and other premises should likewise check whether their address falls within the outage zone.

The scheduled end time is 3 p.m. Thursday. Residents should follow PVK’s updates in case the repair timetable changes.

Checking the map before heading to a distribution point will also help customers locate the nearest replacement supply rather than assume one will be available on their street.

The interruption affects part of a much larger network. Prague’s water mains extend for approximately 3,700 kilometers, and PVK supplies drinking water to around 1.3 million Prague residents and another 250,000 people in Central Bohemia.

PVK operates the capital’s water infrastructure under a lease from the city-owned Prague Water Management Company, known as PVS. That agreement runs until 2028.

The operator is currently majority-owned by France’s Veolia, with Prague holding a minority stake. The city plans to acquire the remaining share and become PVK’s sole owner after the lease expires.