The Kaipara District Council has finished repairs on the broken water mains that have drained Dargaville's water supply.
Multiple water main breaks had brought Dargaville's reservoirs below 10 percent capacity, prompting the council to shut off booster pumps at the treatment plant.
That reduced the water pressure at some properties, and cut the supply at others.
A spokesperson for the Kaipara District Council explained the reservoirs could hold around three days worth of treated water, but the damaged lines meant more water was going out than in.
They also confirmed the remaining water supply was safe to drink.
Residents spent the day conserving water with the town's supply at critical levels.
The council says conservation efforts will need to continue through the evening to allow reservoir levels to be restored.
"I think we'll get it solved today, hopefully we'll be able to update people later today on where we're at," Kaipara District Mayor Craig Jepson said earlier.
"We are also putting water tankers outside the council building in Dargaville so if people need water they can come and get water if we get to the point where we actually run out."
They council plan to release another update at 6pm.
Kaipara District Mayor Craig Jepson was hopeful the breaks could be repaired by the end of Friday. Photo: Supplied / Kaipara District Council
Earlier businesses on Dargaville's Victoria Street were suffering.
"[It's impacting] hugely, we've done about a quarter of what we would normally do already," Sixty8 Cafe owner Alesha Thorn said.
"We're a little bit nervous to prep and carry on because what if they do shut it off? There's a bit of uncertainty around and I'm not too sure how the rest of the day will go."
She said it was confusing and frustrating for businesses like hers that relied on water.
"There's not been much communication in the way of: should we be shut? Should we be going? Because when you're holding a food license you can't really conserve any more [water] than usual," she said.
"We're kind of here twiddling our thumbs waiting for the odd coffee [order]."
She said the district's infrastructure issues had put businesses in a difficult position.
"It's not good enough and we'd like the council to put a little bit more maintenance into the systems because we're just constantly having problems up here... I think we've been let down a bit."
A receptionist at Dargaville Intermediate noted each of the town's schools had back-up water supplies and would stay open.
Dargaville High School said they were open as normal.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
