The ongoing water service outage in the Shenandoah area has prompted Borough officials to declare a Local Disaster Emergency.
The Borough announced early Tuesday morning that water service was off after the water treatment facility was taken offline. This has affected water service in Shenandoah, Shenandoah Heights, Weston Place, Turkey Run, William Penn, and Lost Creek.
A water main break in an unknown location is being blamed for the service outage.
For more than a week, the Borough has been reporting numerous water leaks and main breaks throughout Shenandoah.
Tuesday’s disaster declaration allows Shenandoah to coordinate directly with Aqua Pennsylvania, which owns the Borough’s water service, in restoration efforts.
Emergency potable water stations can be established in various locations because of the disaster declaration.
It also allows the Borough to seek emergency financial relief from Schuylkill County and state government sources as well as spend public money and enter into contracts without going through the typical legislative process.
Shenandoah says it is working with Aqua to restore service but also first identify the source of the latest water main break or breaks that caused water service issues on Monday.
The water treatment was taken offline as a first step in helping to identify the source of the latest water main break.
The Borough says fire protection and emergency services are still operational and available to residents and businesses. For any emergency, residents and businesses should still call 9-1-1 and for non-emergencies, phone 570-462-1991.
Residents and businesses are being urged to conserve any available water. Aqua says it brought in an emergency supply of potable water on Tuesday, from which those affected by the service outage can fill jugs and other containers.
A Boil Water Advisory remains in effect until further notice.
Earlier Tuesday, the Borough directed its Public Works Dept. to open several manhole covers to direct creek water into the sewer system to prevent stagnation in it and keep waste moving toward the sewage treatment facility.
FULL COVERAGE:
- Aqua Responds to Shenandoah’s Critique of Water Emergency
- BREAKING NEWS: No Water in Shenandoah
- Boil Water Advisory Issued for All of Shenandoah
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