Due to the fact that the city’s water plant lost pressure, resulting in low water pressure throughout the city, a boil water notice has been put in place “until further notice”

City water customers were notified of the boil water notice through the Code Red emergency service.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, below are the following tips residents should follow during a boil water notice:

• Use bottled or boiled water for drinking, and to prepare and cook food.
• If bottled water is not available, bring water to a full rolling boil for one minute (at elevations above 6,500 feet, boil for 3 minutes), then allow it to cool before use.
• Boil tap water even if it is filtered.
• Do not use water from any appliance connected to your water line, such as ice and water from a refrigerator.

Handwashing

• In many situations, you can use tap water and soap to wash hands.
• Be sure to scrub your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, and rinse them well under running water.
• If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.

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 teeth with boiled or bottled water. Do not use untreated tap water.

Washing dishes

• If possible, use disposable plates, cups, and utensils during a boil water advisory.
• Household dishwashers generally are safe to use if the water reaches a final rinse temperature of at least 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65.55°Celsius), or if the dishwater has a sanitizing cycle.
• Sterilize all baby bottles.
  • To wash dishes by hand:
    • Wash and rinse the dishes as you normally would using hot water.
    • In a separate basin, add 1 teaspoon of unscented household liquid bleach for each gallon of warm water.
    • Soak the rinsed dishes in the water for at least one minute.
    • Let the dishes air dry completely before using again.

Laundry

• It is safe to wash clothes as usual.

Caring for pets

• Pets can get sick by some of the same germs as people or spread germs to people. Provide bottled or boiled water after it has been cooled for pets to use.
• If bottled water is not available, bring water to a full rolling boil for one minute (at elevations above 6,500 feet, boil for 3 minutes), then allow it to cool before use.
• Boil tap water even if it is filtered.
• Do not use water from any appliance connected to your water line, such as ice and water from a refrigerator.

 

Late Wednesday, city officials urged residents to stop using water as heavy demand had lowered the pressure through the system and forced a restart of the city’s water plant.

Now, as the sun rises on another icy and treacherous day in Vicksburg, city crews are searching for waterline breaks that have continued to disrupt service and kept water pressure levels low.

“Crews are out right now looking for the breaks,” Mayor George Flaggs Jr. said. “If people do not have water, please know that we are working on it, and for those who may still have water, please be very conservative in using it.”

Widespread rumors of a citywide water shutdown on Wednesday led residents to overreact and pull water from the system in large amounts, filling bottles and bathtubs. The surge of usage dropped levels in storage tanks and lowered water pressures in the system, forcing city officials to plead with residents to stop using the water for a few hours as the water plant was restarted and primed.

“We are getting there,” Flaggs said. “The breaks are now our biggest issue and we are hunting for them right now.”