Texans warned to cook and conserve water if power outages persist

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The first Texans lost their power. Now they are losing their drinking water.

After enduring several days of freezing temperatures and dripping Texans faucets to keep frozen pipes from bursting, cities across the state warned residents on Wednesday that the water level is dangerously low and may be unsafe to drink. They ask Texans to boil tap water for drinking, cooking, brushing their teeth and making ice – as residents have struggled to conserve power and heat as an unprecedented winter storm sweeps across the state. Activities such as showering and doing laundry are safe, but cities that cook underwater are asking people to conserve water when possible.

According to a spokesman for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, about 420 public water systems in 120 Texas counties have reported service outages since Wednesday afternoon, affecting more than 8 million people.

“The water pressure is very low. Please don’t run water to avoid burst pipes, ”Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner tweeted Wednesday morning. “Turn off the water if the pipes are cracked. If you don’t know how to shut off the water, please contact us. Be careful with water use today. It’s needed for hospitals and fires. “

Austin Mayor Steve Adler acknowledged Wednesday afternoon that dripping faucets earlier this week were the correct guideline, but now it is in the interest of the people to “switch gears and conserve water.” The city is also calling on volunteers who can help transport people from their homes to warming centers.

At a press conference on Wednesday, Toby Baker, executive director of TCEQ, said water quality issues were linked to the lack of electricity, frozen and broken water pipes, and people leaking from faucets so much that the water caused lower pressure. Baker also said it will take testing to show that water is safe before boil notifications can be lifted. There are only 135 labs in the state that do that sampling, he said, meaning the boil notifications could get stuck.

“It is not clear when water supplies will be replenished, but energy constraints often affect the water system because the water system requires energy for treatment and pumping,” said Michael Webber, a professor of energy resources at the University of Texas at Austin.

But with freezing temperatures expected to continue throughout the week, burst pipes could still be a risk, Webber said.

“If the temperature drops below freezing again, there is a risk of water freezing in pipes which can block water flow or damage the pipes,” Webber said.

The loss of drinking water is a devastating blow to Texans who still suffer power losses in freezing temperatures.

Madie Leon Riley, a Pflugerville resident who has been without water since Monday morning, said she doesn’t know when to turn her faucet back on – or when her toilet can flush without snow melting in it. keep the water flow moving. Her mother and husband, who currently live with her, also boil snow as backup drinking water.

“There are no supermarkets in our area, so there is no chance of restocking your supplies, even if you are one of the few with a car that can cover the miles it takes to get water,” says Riley. a 27-year-old writer, told The Texas Tribune.

A Fort Worth resident reported a small stream of water the width of a pencil near their home. A Houston woman who lives near the Medical Center got water back about an hour later yesterday, but said it was brown and undrinkable. A resident of San Antonio said their water froze even after turning their faucets on.

On Tuesday, more than 200,000 residents of northern Fort Worth, as well as people in Keller, Southlake, Roanoke and other nearby communities were told to boil their water because power outages hit water treatment plants, the Dallas Morning News reported.

On the same day, several Houston counties, including the Pearland, Katy and Greatwood-Sugarland areas, issued the same instructions to their clients, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Mid-Wednesday, Austin water encouraged residents in southern parts of the city to boil water before drinking it, but claimed that “no pollutants were detected in the water we supply”.

#AustinWater asks customers in the Southwest #Austin and Lost Creek neighborhood to boil their water before using it for drinking or cooking, until further notice, ”Austin Water tweeted“This boiling water notification is currently in specific areas and is a precautionary measure to ensure the health and safety of our customers.”

The City of Arlington has also issued a notice asking residents to boil water before consuming it. Corpus Christi did that too.

For now, it is unclear when cities can lift their water boiling notices. While some areas of Austin have made precautionary statements, other cities, such as San Angelo, have spent days without safe drinking water after city officials discovered industrial chemicals contaminated the water system.