Peabody water main break drains tower

By PHYLLIS ZORN

Staff writer

A Tuesday night water main rupture in Peabody drained the entire water tower and the city is now under a boil water advisory.

City clerk Jylle Wilson said water was gushing out of the ground like “a very large fountain” when a resident spotted it on 5th St. between Locust and Plum Sts. at 10 p.m. Tuesday. The water main break was located six blocks from the water tower.

The crack in the six-inch pipe was six feet long, Wilson said.

Workers spent all night repairing the leak and finished the job at 6:30 a.m. today.

“The tower is refilling and from what I’ve heard from people calling in, they’re starting to get some pressure back, but nobody’s got full pressure back,” Wilson said this morning.

Failure to maintain adequate pressure may result in a loss of chlorine residuals and bacterial contamination. 

Only KDHE can rescind the boil-water order.

Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued a boil water advisory at 6:30 a.m. this morning, Wilson said.

How long the boil water advisory will be in effect depends on when a Salina laboratory gives the all-clear, Wilson said.

“Once the tower is fuller and he’s flushed the line for a while, he’ll be able to take samples and run them to Salina,” she said.

A couple of weeks ago, another main ruptured a couple of blocks away, Wilson noted.

KDHE issued the following precautions:

• Boil water for one minute prior to drinking or food preparation or use bottled water.
• Dispose of ice cubes and do not use ice from a household automatic icemaker.
• If tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears.
• Disinfect dishes and other food contact surfaces by immersing them for at least one minute in clean tap water that contains one teaspoon of unscented household bleach per gallon of water.
• Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled. Children should be supervised while bathing so water is not ingested. People with cuts or severe rashes may wish to consult a physician.

The city has long known it needed to replace its water system.

City council members applied for a loan or grant to replace the system before July, Wilson said.