The city’s water system situation is improving but there’s still no firm timeline for when the water boil advisory will end.
Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) issued a water boil advisory Friday as freezing temperatures broke water pipes and mains throughout its service area. Leaking water reduced water pressure across the system and officials worried it could allow contaminants to get into the water. However, it was a precautionary move, and MLGW officials said they had not found any contaminants in the the water.
But the system is now “continually moving in the right direction,” MLGW president and CEO J.T. Young said Monday afternoon. The system is still “in the red” but is on the cusp of “moving into a much better phase.”
Young said MLGW crews have repaired about 80 water mains and were working on a couple more Monday. However, he said the issue now may be property leaks happening in residences, “where customers may not yet have realized their water lines are gushing water.”
Nick Newman, MLGW’s vice president of engineering and operations, said water pressure has improved in South Memphis and in parts of East Memphis. However, water pressure remains low Downtown, in Midtown, and in areas on the edges of MLGW’s service area.
He said the situation with water pumping stations is that they’re “not out of the red. It was deep red and now it’s light red and moving to the yellow category.”
However, Newman said he could not predict when the situation would pass. However, he said MLGW would provide daily updates on it.