Yesterday was like any other day expect for the fact that I woke up to brown, sputtering water… yuk! It actually started out clear yet sputtering (like we’d lost water pressure) and then turned funny colors which was an obvious indication not to use it.
Certainly, I wasn’t worried as we had plenty of water storage–though we wound up drinking bottled water most of the morning and, strangely, I even had a plan to procure more if need be. 🙂 Yes, it was an annoyance because it meant altering my plans (such as showering) and forced me to take alternative steps to do things like brush my teeth. Again, no big deal just annoying.
What bothered me about the whole situation was that for the second time in as many months of having a water problem there was no communication from the authorities to me, the consumer. I’m supposed to receive boil water warnings via my NOAA weather radio but nothing alerted me whatsoever. I’m also on the local city e-alerts… did I get one… no? I even proactively checked the city’s website for any updates and not a one!
I wound up calling the local water services just to be sure it was a city thing and not just me and, yes, they had a major water line break. Again, the problem is a lack of communications from the people who are supposed to tell me when there’s a problem I need to know about… who knows what nasty things are in that water (even if clear) had I or my family choose to drink it?
So, as much as I like to believe we can rely on the authorities on occasion, this small example just goes to show you’re usually on your own. As I do occasionally talk to the mayor I’ll have to quiz him about this one.
[Edit: We also lost power for a few hours last night… heck, I almost felt like we were having our own mini disaster.]
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