LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Meade County Water District (MCWD) says all 5,500 customers in its service area should have "some" level of running water as of Wednesday afternoon, but the pressure is not high enough for many homes.
UPDATE: As of Thursday, officials said tank levels are steadily increasing, as is water pressure. They will now begin filling the Painesville tank Thursday evening, although officials can't give an estimated time when full service will be restored. The boil water advisory remains in effect.
MCWD manager Brett Pyles says the first water tank in their system, the Flaherty tank, is only 30% full at last report. The next tank in the system is 15% full at last report.
Pyles said he believes every one of their customers has lower-than-normal pressure at the moment.
He sent out in a press release around 5 p.m. saying "there may still be some customers that do not have water."
A boil advisory will remain in effect for all customers - which includes most rural Meade County residents and excludes the city of Brandenburg - until the entire system reaches 30 psi (pounds per square inch).
MCWD has bottled water for anyone that needs it at their main office, 1003 Armory Place in Brandenburg, during normal business hours.
People can also purchase water through a coin-operated pump at 130 Ghen Rd. in Brandenburg. The pump is located on the back side of the building.
A representative from the Kentucky Rural Water Association will be at MCWD Thursday morning and Pyles says it will be a "collaborative effort" to get the entire system fixed.
Water pressure and outages have been an issue in Meade County since Monday afternoon, due to a combination of burst pipes and elevated usage over the weekend.
MCWD is asking people to not blame its supplier, Hardin County Water District Station 1, for these issues.
"Our wholesale supplier, Hardin County Water District No.1 has not cut off our water supply or intentionally limited our system in any way. While they were trying to keep up in their system, the lower pressure made it more difficult for us to pump an adequate amount of water. Their situation has improved and made our situation better. But we are still not where we should be," Pyles said.
He says they are about six months deep in the planning to add a second source of water to their overall system. That plan has gotten $7.5 million worth of funding and could be done in the next 2-3 years.
As service gets restored MCWD is asking for customers to report any water leaks or low pressure to the agency.
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