VALDOSTA —
Friday afternoon, the city of Valdosta issued a request to citizens to please refrain from all non-essential use of water through the weekend, as pumps at the treatment plant are being repaired.
Non-essential use is considered outdoor watering and irrigation, and effective immediately, the city has suspended all outdoor water uses for 72 hours, or until further notice.
Valdosta Utilities Director Henry Hicks said Friday that the elevated tanks are good, and the ground storage tanks are low but not critical.
However, “The key times to watch are just after lunch and especially early evening. Mornings and evenings are our daily peak demand periods as well as the times when most irrigation systems are on. Our plan is to have the temporary pump system installed by end of the day immediately followed by disinfection of pump and piping. A bacterial sample is then collected and cultivated to determine if the disinfection process did the job,” he said.
Hicks said this will not alleviate the need to keep restrictions on non-essential or outdoor water use, though.
“We need every customer to use water wisely and curtail all non-essential or outdoor water use, at least through the weekend.”
A city press release says the cause of the water woes are mechanical issues in several well pumps.
An emergency pump and associated pipe were being installed Friday and are expected to be online within 24 hours, but that is only a temporary solution while the pumps are fixed.
The city is expected to release more information through the weekend on its website, www.valdostacity.com.
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