Dedicated City Employees Work to Restore Water, Boil Order Update

By Tammy Moore Teague
Waldron city employees worked through poor weather conditions on Saturday in an effort to restore water back to the citizens. The water main break, which occurred on North Main Street, left some with low water pressure and others without water at all
With due diligence, however, city workers repaired the line and restored the utility by Saturday evening. City Recorder/Treasurer Sherry Johnston said, “The report of a sudden drop in the readings at the Waldron Water Treatment Plant was an indication of a major water leak at approximately 10 p.m. on Friday night, October 12. However, there were no reports of a leak around town. A repair crew was called in and located excess water on North Main, close to R & R Auto Repair.  The crew dug during the rainy night and the source of the leak was difficult to find due to the volume of water.  It was located at an unusual intersection of a valve with four 8” main water lines and close to a 24” drainage.  There was approximately 5’ of rushing water in the hole and the actual leak was difficult to find.  Although several pumps were in place to remove the water, the volume of water caused the crew to search under water before the source of the rupture could be located. After working for a few hours, heavy rains flooded the area from the nearby 24” drainage pipe, adding more water to an already bad situation. The rain continued throughout the night and the next day.  Saturday morning, the Waldron Water Treatment Plant was shut down to relieve the rush of water that kept pouring in. The ruptured line was an 8” main line with a 5’ split that extended into a valve where the four 8” lines met.  The repair was completed as the crew worked throughout the night and Saturday afternoon, often standing in mud and water and occasional heavy rain.  The repair was completed at approximately 3:30 p.m. on Saturday and the crew remained on the job flushing lines and demobilizing for approximately an additional hour.”

She added “We are so blessed to have wonderful and dedicated city employees.” Scott County Sheriff Randy Shores agrees, adding “I saw those boys in standing water, I know they had to be cold.”
The city remains under a precautionary boil order at this time. Citizens can expect that to remain in place at least until tomorrow. We will continue to keep you updated on the boil order status.