The good news with McComb’s water situation is that city crews have found no major leaks in the system. The bad news is that means there are a lot of homes and businesses with burst pipes, the city’s public works director said.
The city experienced a loss in pressure to water service on Sunday — the first day above freezing after three days, when water began flowing again and straining compromised plumbing.
Public Works Director Eric Spurlock said crews have searched the city for water main breaks but didn’t find any noticeable leaks.
“It’s not a major leak anywhere,” he said.
Spurlock said pressure is returning to the water system as more residents and business owners are discovering water leaks and shutting off their water.
“People are waking up and cutting their water off,” he said. “It’s filling back up.”
Spurlock said he expects more pressure to return to the system as more leaks are discovered and repaired, although with some people still out of town over the Christmas holiday and some businesses and offices still closed Monday, it could take a while for all of the leaks on private property to be found.
City officials had expressed concern about a possible water main break near Front Street, but that turned out to be water gushing from the plumbing beneath the McColgan Hotel.
In the meantime, public works officials are using five pumps to feed enough pressure into the system to avoid a boil-water notice.
“I’m running the pumps until I feel safe,” Spurlock said.
He said people need to check their water meters to make sure they don’t have a leak. If they do, then they need to cut off the water supply at the meter. He said public works employees can help with that if needed. Call (601) 684-3497.
“You can go out there and look at your meter and if that little wheel is spinning and you’ve got all of your water turned off inside, then you’ve got a water leak,” he said.
Spurlock said he’s seen good signs after restoring water pressure.
“When I seen those folks washing those cars at the car wash behind Walmart, I knew then that we were doing good,” he said. “They use a lot of water.”
