Water Emergency
Update from Illinois American Water

 

[November 27, 2018] 

LINCOLN 

Updated statement from Illinois American Water

WHAT OCCURRED:

The winter storm Sunday night impacted our operations and resulted in a power outage in our system. There was lightning in the area of the plant but it has not been determined if lightning played a role in the power outage.

This outage impacted water pressure and resulted in some customers being without water service or low pressure. We immediately contacted city officials including the fire chief. A large tanker was filled with water to ensure continued fire protection.

We also notified customers via our CodeRED call system and local media release. Information was also posted to our website and Facebook page. We asked customers to conserve water and use water only for essential purposes. This effort has helped and will continue to help us to restore water capacity to normal.

Unfortunately water pressure continued to decrease and we needed to issue a boil water order. This notice was also sent via CodeRED and local media release as well as shared in our online alerts and on Facebook. Any time pressure drops below 20 psi in any part of a distribution system a boil water order is required by the EPA to safeguard customers.
 

WHERE ARE WE NOW:

All Illinois American Water Lincoln District customers are back in water service though some may be experiencing low pressure. Because pressure continues to be impacted, the boil water order and conservation request was extended. Another CodeRED and media update was issued Monday morning. Information was shared via Facebook and on our website.

Our team is working to restore the system to full pressure as soon as possible. We are working closely with our team and contractors to make critical repairs including repairs to wells and pumping equipment which were impacted Sunday night. We expect critical repairs to go intoTuesday. Our water quality team has also communicated with the Illinois EPA regarding this event. Once repairs are made and pressures restored, we will complete water quality testing required prior to lifting the boil water order.

CUSTOMER IMPACT:

Customers should continue to bring their water to a rolling boil for 5 minutes prior to using for consumption.

Customers should continue to conserve water and not use tap water for:

Washing dishes/dishwashers
Washing clothes/washing machines
Filling bathtubs; limit showers
Recreational activities (hot tubs)

FUTURE UPDATES:

Customers, news media and emergency personnel will be contacted once the boil water order is lifted. Customers can also view information in our online alerts at www.illinoisamwater.com  We will continue to keep the public, emergency response personnel and fire department updated as we make repairs.

We appreciate the patience and understanding of our Lincoln area customers as we work to restore the system. Our team is working around the clock to make repairs as quickly and safely as possible.

[Karen Cotton
External Affairs
Illinois American Water]