REIDSVILLE, N.C. —
The City of Reidsville has revealed more details about a water main break that prompted a water boil advisory and left much of the city without water, including schools, a hospital, and a nursing home.
Below is an account of what happened:
Officials said on May 13, shortly after 2 a.m., a series of power fluctuations caused one of the city's water treatment plants' high service pumps to rapidly de-energize and energize before shutting off completely.
The operator on duty immediately notified the plant's superintendent, and maintenance staff were called in to get the plant back online. Within 15 minutes, officials said the operator noticed the city's elevated water storage tanks were rapidly dropping, indicating a possible large water main break. In response, the plant superintendent alerted other officials about the potential break so that it could be located and repaired.
Around 3:30 a.m., officials said residents and businesses on the city's water system started losing water service. While water distribution officials said they knew that a leak must have occurred, finding the leak while it was raining in the early morning hours can be problematic. An hour later, a sanitation employee then alerted crews that a substantial leak had occurred on Park Lane, which led crews to initially uncover a roughly four-foot section of broken pipe that needed to be repaired. Another break was discovered on the same waterline, extending the time for approximately 14 feet of pipe repairs.
Officials said the city sent out a "CodeRED" around 5:15 a.m. informing residents. City representatives also reached out to our major industries, healthcare facilities and the school system during this time.
Crews said they repaired the water main break by late afternoon on May 13, and water pressure continued to improve. Although repaired, anytime a large water main break occurs, cities are required to take water samples throughout the water distribution system for testing and incubating them for 24 hours. This prompted the water boil advisory.
If no contamination is detected, the advisory can be lifted, which is what occurred around 7:30 p.m. on May 14.
As a result of the incident, city officials said the community began asking questions regarding the operation of the plant. When thunderstorms occur in the area or if there are power outages, the plant either shuts down completely or goes on generator power. On the morning of May 13, there was only rain without prior power issues reported. Once the power fluctuations occurred, officials said the plant did go on generator power to ensure no more interruptions of service.
At the time of this water main break, the city's elevated storage tanks, which supply water for emergencies and pressure, were on average about 71% full, containing about 1,075,000 gallons of water. Officials said the water main break was so large it drained the tanks and the distribution system of more than an estimated 2.8 million gallons in a little over an hour's time. For reference, the city said it averages 3.85 million gallons of water per day.
City Manager Summer Moore called key personnel together for a debrief on Monday to review what happened and the improvements that could be made. Staff said they reviewed a variety of issues related to supply needs and the logistics involved when emergencies occur. Moore designated Fire Chief Josh Farmer, the City's new Assistant City Manager of Public Safety, to be the main emergency point of contact if such situations happen in the future. Chief Farmer will also be spearheading efforts to update the city's emergency operations plan.
The Reidsville Water Treatment Plant has been undergoing a major electrical upgrade, which will include adding a whole plant generator with an automatic transfer switch, replacing the plant's main motor control center. This would also add variable frequency drives (VFDs) to the high service pumps. These VFDs are more sensitive to electrical issues, causing them to shut down if an issue occurs and will have phase monitoring built in. This would automatically shut down a High Service Pump if power was lost, and the pump could only be restarted by the operator.
Also being installed is the ability to digitally record distribution system pressure. This will help staff to better understand system pressures and be able to refer back to the digital recording.
City staff are also working closely with Duke Energy.