The City of Jackson issued a precautionary boil water advisory that will be in effect until further notice. The advisory is due to the recent loss in water pressure and is for the entire drinking water system in the Capitol City and includes individuals who are served by surface water and backup wells.
Mississippi has been experiencing freezing temperatures this week after the arrival of an Arctic cold front. As a result, some parts in central and south Mississippi are experiencing water problems.
In the Capitol city, the water treatment system, the water elevated storage tanks, and the water distribution systems are experiencing challenges in meeting customer demand. Some areas are also experiencing low water pressure due to several water main breaks throughout the city.
The Director of Public Works has declared an emergency in order to bring in contractor crews to supplement the City workforce. The Jackson Mayor’s office says that they anticipate the emergency may continue through the remainder of this week.
The coast is also seeing some water problems as Waveland and Bay St. Louis are currently under a boil water notice after the control panel was frozen.
“The control panel communicates with the wells that supply the water, and Waveland public works are insulating the building that houses that panel,” said Kipp Gregory.
In an attempt to conserve water consider this list of simple tips provided by the city of Jackson to help with saving some water.
- Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth. Water comes out of the average household faucet at 2.5 gallons per minute. Don’t let all that water go down the drain while you brush! Turn off the faucet after you wet your brush, and leave it off until it’s time to rinse.
- Turn off the tap while washing your hands. Do you need the water to run while you’re scrubbing your hands? Save a few gallons of water and turn the faucet off after you wet your hands until you need to rinse.
- Hand-washing a lot of dishes? Fill up your sink with water, instead of letting it run the whole time that you’re scrubbing.
- Cut your showers short. Older shower heads can use as much as 5 gallons of water per minute. Speed things up in the shower for some serious water savings.
- Don’t run the dishwasher or washing machine until it’s full. Those half-loads add up to gallons and gallons of water wasted.
- Wash clothes in moderation.
- Fill up water containers, bathtub, etc.
- Purchase extra drinking water.
