City to remain under Boil Water Advisory

Reidsville City Public Works crews have fixed the water main break that occurred in the early morning hours of Tuesday, May 13, on Park Lane and are currently repairing the roadway there.

Most Reidsville homes and businesses should have water although water pressure will continue to improve over the succeeding hours. If you have no water, please open up your faucets to allow the air in the lines to dissipate.

Now that the water main break has been fully repaired, Water Treatment Plant officials will be compiling water samples throughout the City. It will be a minimum of 24 hours before the test results will be known. Until then, the current Boil Water Advisory remains in effect and residents on the City’s water system are urged to use precautionary measures until the advisory can be lifted. City officials are hoping to have the results by Wednesday evening, May 14. Once the advisory has been lifted, notice will be given via the City’s CodeRED system, and on the City of Reidsville Facebook page and City website, reidsvillenc.gov (City News page) as well as distributed to local media. See the tips at the end of this press release regarding Boiling Water Advisories.

As was reported earlier, electrical surges brought on by Monday night’s weather caused one of the Reidsville Water Plant’s high service pumps to rapidly energize and de-energize. This caused excessive pressure in the water distribution system, which led to a water main break on one of the City’s 12-inch pipes that caused a rapid loss of water supply and pressure. Upon repairing a roughly 4-foot section of broken pipe, City Public Works crews uncovered another leak on the same waterline, which was also fixed.

If a resident has questions or concerns, please call the City’s Public Works Department at 336-349-1070 during normal business hours, 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays. After hours if you experience water or sewer issues, please call 336-634-3300.

While under a Boil Water Advisory, residents are advised to boil all water used for human consumption - this includes drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, food preparation, etc. Residents and businesses are urged to conserve water or to use bottled water until these problems are resolved.

Please see the following tips from the CDC when under a Boil Water Advisory:

Boiling Water Advisory Tips from the CDC:

• If local officials issue a boil water advisory, use commercially bottled water or boil your tap water. If commercially bottled water is not available, boil your tap water. To kill germs, bring water to a full rolling boil for 1 minute. At elevations above 6,500 feet, boil for 3 minutes. To avoid burns, allow boiled water to cool before you use it. Boil your tap water even if you filter it. For example, still boil tap water if it has been through a home water filter or a pitcher that filters water.

• For drinking and cooking: use commercially bottled water or boiled water for drinking and to prepare and cook food.

• Handwashing: in many cases, you can use tap water and soap to wash your hands during a boil water advisory.

• Bathing and showering: be careful not to swallow any water when bathing or showering. Use caution when bathing babies and young children. Consider giving them a sponge bath to reduce the chance of them swallowing water. Brushing teeth: brush your teeth using boiled water or commercially bottled water. Do not use tap water that you have not boiled first.

• Washing dishes: if possible, use disposable plates, cups, and utensils during a boil water advisory. Sanitize all baby bottles.

• Dishwashers are generally safe to use if they have a sanitizing cycle or reach a final rinse temperature of at least 150°F (66°C). Check the manual or contact the manufacturer to find out what temperature your dishwater reaches.

To wash dishes by hand:

1. Wash and rinse the dishes as you normally would using hot water.

2. In a separate basin, add 1 teaspoon of unscented household liquid bleach for each gallon of warm water.

3. Soak the rinsed dishes in the water for at least one minute.

4. Let the dishes air dry completely before using them again.

• Laundry: It is safe to wash clothes as usual.

• Caring for pets: Give pets commercially bottled water or boiled water that has cooled. Pets can get sick from some of the same germs as people or spread germs to people.

• Caring for your garden and houseplants. You can use tap water for houseplants and gardens, including watering plants you eat.