Olpe-area residents are dealing with a boil water advisory Thursday, and it may not get cleared until the weekend.
Olpe Mayor Keith Pimple says the leak has been isolated on South Center Street and most of the town now has water, but the advisory won’t be lifted until the Kansas Department of Health and Environment can test the town’s water samples. That process may take until Sunday or Monday to complete, depending on whether KDHE will accept test samples this weekend.
Recommendations on boiling water can be found below.
4:20 pm Thursday: Boil water advisory issued for Olpe following water line break Thursday
Olpe residents will need to boil water before consuming it until further notice.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued a boil water advisory for Olpe Thursday afternoon. The advisory was issued following a water line break on the transmission line from Emporia causing a loss of pressure to the town’s distribution system and a potential loss of chlorine residuals.
The exact location of the break has yet to be determined, however, the entire town is currently without service. Calls to the city clerk’s office began around 12:30 pm.
The immediate plans are to locate the break and have repairs finished as soon as possible. The advisory and loss of service will not impact local schools as the district was scheduled for a day off Friday.
Residents are told to boil water for one minute prior to drinking or preparing food. Additionally, residents should flush their lines if their tap water appears dirty by letting the water run until it clears.
Residents should also dispose of ice cubes and not use ice from a household ice maker, disinfect dishes using a combination of clear tap water and one teaspoon of unscented bleach per gallon of water. Water does not need to be boiled prior to bathing, however, it should not be ingested.
Stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for more updates as the situation develops.
