Service restored after weekend pump outage

 

SCOTTOWN — A pump outage that left about 800 customers without water in the Lawrence Water Corporation service area over the weekend has been repaired, but residents remain on a boil water advisory as of Monday morning.

A power outage Friday that effected nearly 2,000 residents and businesses in Lawrence County caused a motor to stop running in the pump station in Athalia, according to Doug Conley, president of the water company’s board.

“We were not alerted due to the fact it (the power outage) knocked out the phones systems,” Conley said. “When we did find it, the pump station was flooded.”

Conley said the pump was completely submerged and the motor was removed for drying, a process that takes about six hours. The pump was reinstalled Saturday evening.

“Then we had to wait on all the tanks to refill,” Conley said. “Along with that, we had tests on the water that were going through and we put out the alert for a boil water advisory.”

Conley said the state provided bottled water for customers to pick up at the plant at 11300 Ohio 217, Scottown.

The boil water advisory will be in place until water quality tests are complete, which could be Monday night at the earliest, Conely said, but everyone in the service area should have running water.

“If we don’t have any more breaks due to freezes, everything should be up and back to normal,” he said.

Residents can still pick up water today at Lawrence Water Corp. until 4 p.m.