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Five samples of water from domestic supply were submitted for
chemical or bacteriological examination during the year and the reports
indicated that in every instance the samples were pure and wholesome
and suitable for public supply.
Arrangements are also made to take periodic samples from the
drinking fountains in the Council's parks and open spaces. Samples
were taken during the year from four different fountains for chemical
and bacteriological examination and all proved to be satisfactory. One
of these fountains were on the supply of the Sutton District Water
Company and three on that of the Metropolitan Water Board.
Climatic Conditions. The early weeks of the year were characterised
by weather of almost unparalleled severity. This began in the last few
days of 1962 and continued with heavy snowfalls and intense frost which
was experienced even as far into the year as the month of March.
The severe cold occasioned much hardship, particularly to old
people, when fuel supplies, including paraffin, almost completely dried
up and with electricity power-cuts and load-shedding and falls in gas
pressure there were periods when adequate space-heating could not be
maintained. There were, in addition, instances of households being
unable to obtain hot meals.
Such weather conditions took their toll of the debilitated elderly,
as for week after week they continued without appreciable remission,
a high proportion of deaths occurring at that time being of very old
persons. This was also reflected in the returns for the North East Surrey
Crematorium, where the number of cremations carried out in the first
quarter of 1963 totalled 547, compared with 394 in 1962 and 323 in
1964. Again the extremely old substantially contributed to this high
figure.
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