A WATER leak which has bedevilled the ruins of the Apollo Temple for two years has finally been found – and fixed.

Voices Newspaper’s writer Glenn Maffia was the first to report on the issue back in the summer of 2018, with concerns about the source of the leak which was centred around the bottom end of the Temple.

The water streams have increasingly accumulated in the pit area inside the temple. But it wasn’t until November 2018 when the authorities, including the water authority ASKI, got round to looking at the problem, but the source couldn’t be found.

Glenn back then speculated that it was a broken water pipe – little did he realise how right he would be found to be!

This week, a delegation of high-ranking officials – including Aydin Deputy Governor Reza Dalan, Didim Governor Halil Avsar, and Provincial Culture and Tourism Director Mehmet Umut Tuncer toured the Temple ruins.

Mr Tuncer, speaking to the local press, said the problem had now been solved and within 10 days, with dry weather, the affected area would soon dry up.

It was learned that the water leakage in the temple was caused by the old pipes and lines laid in the city network line laid years ago.

Stating that the problem in the temple was solved with the help of ASKI teams, Provincial Culture and Tourism Director M. Umut Tuncer said: “We were faced with an unknown water leak in the Temple of Apollo for a while. It was a bit of a mystery, frankly. 

“We had the water analyzed and found that it was natural spring water. In ancient times, temples were established around natural water resources. 

“In this context, we came to the conclusion that this water is a part of the history of the temple. 

“However, over time, we observed the risk of structural damage from this water in the temple and we decided to eliminate this risk. We did a very comprehensive study with our ASKI teams. 

“We detected the leak point of the water supply and managed to eliminate the water leak about three days ago. We expect the puddle to dry in a week.”

Stating that the temple is famous and draws in around 100,000 people every year, Mr Tuncer added: “We are very pleased this risk is removed without causing further structural damage due to the increase in the flow rate of the water during the winter months.”