Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas has issued a stark and personal plea to residents, warning that the city's failure to significantly cut water use could have fatal consequences. In a series of urgent media appearances, a visibly worried Mayor Farkas stated that the situation has reached a critical point where emergency response capabilities are now threatened.
A Mayor's Desperate Warning
On Tuesday, January 6, 2026, Mayor Farkas delivered a sobering message to Calgarians. He explicitly stated that if water consumption does not drop dramatically in the short term, the city could enter "loss-of-life territory." The concern is that system pressure could fall so low that fire hydrants would not have enough water to combat blazes effectively, leaving firefighters with hoses that might only blow air.
In an unusual move for a politician, Farkas invited public blame onto himself. "I am ultimately responsible as mayor," he told CBC's Alberta at Noon. "I have been mayor for less than 100 days, but I am personally responsible for this issue... So, if you're looking for somebody to blame, you can blame me and you can hold me accountable."
Consumption Trends Paint an Alarming Picture
The city's water demand remains stubbornly in the "red zone," posing a serious risk to the entire system's integrity. Data reveals a troubling trend: on January 5, 2026, consumption hit 510 million litres, a full 25 million litres above the safe threshold of 485 million litres per day.
This public response stands in stark contrast to the city's last major water crisis. In June 2024, following the first rupture of the Bearspaw South water main, Calgarians heeded conservation pleas and successfully brought usage down to safe levels, even during the higher-demand summer season.
"The early response today looks alarmingly different," the report notes. Despite the mayor's efforts, demand has been climbing steadily since a brief dip on New Year's Day.
Exploring Emergency Measures
In search of a way to break through public apathy, Mayor Farkas and city officials have discussed the possibility of issuing an emergency alert to cellphones across the affected regions. This would target not just Calgary, but also Chestermere, Airdrie, Strathmore, and the Tsuut'ina Nation. A decision on deploying the alert was still pending as of Tuesday afternoon.
Throughout the crisis, Mayor Farkas has expressed solidarity with his council colleagues and has shown no interest in political conflict, including with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. His focus remains squarely on motivating immediate public action to avert a potentially catastrophic failure of the city's water infrastructure.
