The city of Emporia remains in a water watch until further notice and the city is now asking residents to limit outdoor water use in the coming days.
The city is asking residents to avoid outdoor use between the hours of 4 am and 8 am now until further notice following a meeting of the city’s incident command Wednesday afternoon, specifying activities like landscape irrigation, swimming pool fills and other residential water use. The incident command was “stood up” Tuesday in response to the drop in water pressure that occurred Monday afternoon and with close to 40 confirmed main breaks since September 12. Wednesday has had one water main break as of 5 pm — 23rd and Hillcrest.
Residents with automated sprinkler systems are also being asked to alter their scheduled times to outside of the 4 am to 8 am timeframe. The city’s incident command is constantly evaluating the situation and will make further announcements as needed.
Stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for more updates as they become available. More information from the city is available at emporiaks.gov/waterlinefaq.
*Click here for prior KVOE News coverage of recent water main breaks.
10 am Wednesday: EMPORIA WATER: Early returns on hydrant flushing project promising despite line break early Wednesday
Despite another water main break, Emporia City Manager Trey Cocking says he’s pleased with the city’s decision to begin flushing fire hydrants in northwest Emporia.
The city’s incident command team made that decision after planning conversations Tuesday — and after nearly 40 water main breaks since Sept. 12. Cocking says the goal is to balance the city’s water pressure with the East 12th Avenue water tower offline for rehab work, possibly until late November.
The plan now is to have the flushing underway while the East 12th Avenue tower is offline. Flushing will be constant, although it may well be adjusted or halted briefly depending on demand.
Cocking’s appearance on KVOE’s 8:05 am newscast followed a water main break near 23rd and Hillcrest, the second one in two days at that intersection. Hillcrest has had several breaks between 21st and 23rd since Sept. 12. Cocking says that particular water line is “really bad” and needs to be replaced.
Cocking says the city had higher demand for water than normal late Tuesday night into early Wednesday. The cause is under investigation.
When it comes to costs associated with the water main repairs, Cocking says those expenses are largely fixed, aside from chemicals and electricity — and it’s cheaper for the “water on the ground” than repairing the leak. He also expects September overtime and contract costs will be higher than September 2022, but those costs have not been determined. August was slightly higher than a year ago, but the city also had a massive water main break on Flint Road last year.
