Howardwick residents have been dealing with multiple water issues over the last several days, including loss of pressure and loss of service, as Red River Water Authority works to address leaks in the system.
City Secretary Sandra Childress said Tuesday that Red River Regional Manager Jason Caldwell has been great to work with and that the authority has been working late hours to correct issues facing the city.
“This is something that is everybody’s fault,” Childress said. “It’s the city’s fault, it’s Red River’s fault, and it’s the people’s fault who tied into the system illegally. But now we’re all working to fix it, and everybody is just going to have to be patient.”
Childress said issues started about two weeks ago when a fire truck got stuck in what was first thought to be an underground spring while fighting a fire. But she said it was soon discovered that “spring” was actually a massive leak that had been suspected but not located for at least two years.
“We’ve been losing 40,000 gallons a day down Carroll Creek,” Childress said.
Workers got a temporary fix on that line, and then other leaks began to appear in the system, including at places where people have been stealing water service by tying into the water system without a meter.
Childress reiterated that Red River’s management has been working very well with the city, and she also praised the authority’s communication with the city.
Childress said the good news is that the city should not have to ration water in the future if it can keep an extra 40,000 gallons in the system each day. But she also said that repairs will take time.
“The big fixes are short term problems, but repairing all the issues are very long term,” she said.
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