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Jackson crews working to fix water pressure problems

City remains under boil-water notice
Scott Simmons
Weekend Anchor/Reporter
Jackson crews working to fix water pressure problems

City remains under boil-water notice

SCOTT...IT'S DAY 12 OF THIS CRISIS... . LONG LINES AGAIN OUTSIDE THE DELTA MART SHOPPING CENTER THE LATEST PROBLEMS STEM FROM TWO MASSIVE PUMPS THAT STARTED MALFUNCTIONING, FURTHER CRIPPLING A WATER SYSTEM ...THAT CITY OFFICIALS HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET CLEAR OF SAFE DRINKING WATER REGULATIONS. ANOTHER DAY OF JACKSON RESIDENTS.. <LINDA MINOR/TIRED OF WATER PROBLEMS: ...AND THEN I AM PAYING A WATER BILL AND I CAN'T GET WATER!> LINED UP AN HOUR EARLY .. <JEANIE WALKER/TIRED OF WATER PROBLEMS:I REALLY THINK IT IS RIDICULOUS AS LONG AS THIS BEEN GOING ON ...SOMETHING WOULD HAVE BEEN DONE BY NOW..> HOPING TO GET FREE BOTTLED WATER FROM THE CITY...HOPING THEY DON'T HAVE TO PAY MORE OUT OF POCKET. <EMMA RUSSELL/TIRED OF JACKSON WATER PROBLEMS: IT IS PITIFUL ALL OF THE MONEY THAT WE HAVE PAID INTO THE SYSTEM FOR THE LAST 3 OR 4 YEARS..SO WHAT WE GOING TO DO??> THE CITY'S WATER CRISIS COMPOUNDED BY THE FAILURE OF TWO 8 MILLION GALLON WATER PUMPS AT THE O- B CURTIS TREATMENT PLANT THAT 16 WAPT TOURED MONDAY. <MAYOR CHOKWE ANTAR LUMUMBA/JACKSON: I WILL SAY TO YOU AGAIN SCOTT OUR WATER TREATMENT FACILITY IS IN A CONSTANT STATE OF EMERGENCY.> THE MAYOR TELLING ME THOSE PUMPS PULL WATER FROM THE RESERVOIR INTO THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT. <MAYOR CHOKWE ANTAR LUMUMBA: AND SO THEY HAD TO GET A CRANE TO PULL ONE OF THOSE PUMPS OUT IN ORDER TO DO REPAIRS... THEY ARE STILL TRYING TO DO REPAIRS ON THAT ...SO IF WE CAN'T GET WATER IN CONSEQUENTLY ..IT PUTS A DAMPER ON THE SYSTEM TO GET WATER OUT.> THOSE WATER PRESSURE DROPS EFFECTING LARGE PARTS OF THE CITY...MORE FELT FROM SOUTH JACKSON TO BYRAM. J-P-S SAYS THE FIRE DEPARTMENT IS ON STAND BY TO PROVIDE TANKER TRUCKS, IF NEEDED TO SCHOOLS LIKE WILKINS AND WINGFIELD. THE FIRE CHIEF SAYS THE CITY HAS REACHED OUTSIDE THE CITY LIMITS IN CASE IT NEEDS HELP FIGHTING FIRES AND WATER PRESSURE BECOMES A PROBLEM. <CHIEF WILLIE OWENS/JACKSON FIRE DEPARTMENT: WE HAVE OTHER RESOURCES WE COULD TAP INTO IF WE HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE FIRE HYDRANTS. RIGHT SCOTT SIMMONS: BUT HOPEFULLY NO BIG FIRES? CHIEF OWENS: HOPEFULLY NO BIG FIRES!> CITY COUNCIL LEADERS SAYS THEY ARE STILL ASSESSING HOW FEDERAL ARPA MONEY SHOULD BE SPENT IN THE CITY. RIGHT NOW 25 MILLION OF THE 42 MILLION IS ASSIGNED TO INFRASTRUCTURE REPAIRS...BUT IT COULD BE MORE. <AARON BANKS/JACKSON CITY COUNCIL: 25 MILLION BASED ON PLANS THAT HAVE BEEN APPROPRIATED ALL OF THAT HAS NOT YET COME BEFORE THE COUNCIL.> BUT RIGHT NOW CITY OFFICIALS ARE HOPING TO GET THE WATER PUMP PROBLEMS FIXED AS WELL AS THE ONGOING CLOUDINESS PROBLEMS THAT STATE HEALTH LEADERS SAY REQUIRES A BOIL WATER WARNING FOR THE CITY TO CONTINUE. NO INDICATION TONIGH
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Jackson crews working to fix water pressure problems

City remains under boil-water notice
Scott Simmons
Weekend Anchor/Reporter
The city of Jackson is still dealing with water pressure drops on top of an ongoing water quality warning.The latest problems stem from two massive pumps that started malfunctioning at the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant, which further crippled a water system that city officials have not been able to get clear of safe drinking water regulations."I will say to you again, our water treatment facility is in a constant state of emergency," Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said.The mayor said the two 8 million-gallon water pumps pull water from the reservoir into the water treatment plant."They had to get a crane to pull one of those pumps out, in order to do repairs," Lumumba said. "They are still trying to do repairs on that, so if we can't get water in, consequentially, it puts a damper on the system to get water out."Large parts of the city, particularly from South Jackson to Byram, have felt the effects of the pressure drops. Jackson Public Schools said the fire department is on standby to provide tanker trucks, if needed, to schools like Wilkins and Wingfield. Fire Chief Willie Owens said the city has reached outside city limits in case it needs help fighting fires and water pressure becomes a problem."We have other resources we could tap into if we had a problem with the fire hydrants. Right now, they are not bad, as far as I know," Owens said. City council leaders said they are still assessing how federal ARPA money should be spent in the city. Right now, $25 million of the $42 million is assigned to infrastructure repairs, but it could be more."The $25 million is based on plans that have been appropriated. All of that has not yet come before the council," said Jackson City Councilman Aaron Banks.City officials are hoping to get the water pump problems fixed, as well as the ongoing cloudiness problems that state health leaders said require that a boil-water notice for the city continues. There is no indication when that will end.
JACKSON, Miss. —

The city of Jackson is still dealing with water pressure drops on top of an ongoing water quality warning.

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The latest problems stem from two massive pumps that started malfunctioning at the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant, which further crippled a water system that city officials have not been able to get clear of safe drinking water regulations.

"I will say to you again, our water treatment facility is in a constant state of emergency," Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba said.

The mayor said the two 8 million-gallon water pumps pull water from the reservoir into the water treatment plant.

"They had to get a crane to pull one of those pumps out, in order to do repairs," Lumumba said. "They are still trying to do repairs on that, so if we can't get water in, consequentially, it puts a damper on the system to get water out."

Large parts of the city, particularly from South Jackson to Byram, have felt the effects of the pressure drops. Jackson Public Schools said the fire department is on standby to provide tanker trucks, if needed, to schools like Wilkins and Wingfield.

Fire Chief Willie Owens said the city has reached outside city limits in case it needs help fighting fires and water pressure becomes a problem.

"We have other resources we could tap into if we had a problem with the fire hydrants. Right now, they are not bad, as far as I know," Owens said.

City council leaders said they are still assessing how federal ARPA money should be spent in the city. Right now, $25 million of the $42 million is assigned to infrastructure repairs, but it could be more.

"The $25 million is based on plans that have been appropriated. All of that has not yet come before the council," said Jackson City Councilman Aaron Banks.

City officials are hoping to get the water pump problems fixed, as well as the ongoing cloudiness problems that state health leaders said require that a boil-water notice for the city continues. There is no indication when that will end.