Austin Under Boil Advisory After Massive Floods; Silt And Debris Have Overwhelmed Water System

[hatrack]

Silt and debris from floodwaters have overwhelmed Austin’s ability to produce clean water, prompting an unprecedented citywide alert Monday that urged residents to avoid drinking tap water without boiling it first.

By Monday evening, the situation led to a run on bottled water supplies at grocery stores throughout the region — and appeared to be worsening. City officials warned that water use was outpacing the amount of water being treated, and that residents needed to cut their personal water use by 15 to 20 percent to keep the city from running out of water altogether.

Austin Water is restricting nearly all outdoor water use, including irrigation, washing vehicles and adding water to pools. The utility wants to make sure an adequate supply is in place for firefighters and essential water use. Violations can be reported to 311.

“Austin water treatment plants can currently produce 105 million gallons of water per day. Current customer use is about 120 million gallons per day,” officials said. “Water reservoir levels are reaching minimal levels.” Austin Water, the city’s water utility, on Sunday already called on its customers to limit their water use by taking short showers and refraining from doing laundry until absolutely necessary. Officials said water flowing into the city’s water system from supply lakes upriver wasn’t meeting treatment requirements for consumption.

EDIT

https://www.statesman.com/news/20181022/austin-urged-to-boil-water-flood-silt-stalls-treatment

[NNadir]

1. My niece is down there. It doesn't sound good.

She's a graduate student at UT Austin.

It's her first year, and from what I've heard, she's having a bit of culture shock.

Her aunt and I know water shortages; we're ex-Californians. I hope my niece adjusts. That water thing can be interesting, flushing with shower water, etc, but it does get old.