A power outage at Houston Water and Wastewater Utility has forced several schools to close and left millions of residents without water.
“We believe the water is safe but based on regulatory requirements when pressure drops below 20 psi we are obligated to issue a boil water notice. The City is submitting its plan to TCEQ for approval tonight,” Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner stated.
According to NPR, a purification plant lost power at approximately 10:30 on Sunday. Houston Water and Wastewater Utility was able to restore power and return water pressures to their normal levels, but the damage had already been done to its 2.2 million customers. Public officials expect the water boil notice to be lifted late Monday or early Tuesday.
“Water samples will subsequently follow and hopefully we will get the all-clear from TCEQ. The City has to wait 24 hours from that point before the boil water notice is suspended,” Turn added.
“The earliest would be tomorrow night or very early Tuesday morning.”
