More Than Spring Sprung Last Week
3/27/2023
According to the calendar, Monday, March 20, 2023 was the first day of the spring season. For town staff a different kind of spring came on Tuesday, March 21st as many water leaks sprung up around town. Water supply operations for the town changed last week as scheduled maintenance was performed on the elevated water tank on Mecklenburg Avenue, requiring it to be drained and isolated from the water system.
Normally, water system pressure is provided by the height and amount of water in the elevated tank but with that tank closed and isolated from the water system continuous pumping is required to maintain system pressure. These pumps are located at the water filtration plant and at the ground storage tank in town. Victoria’s aging water infrastructure is accustomed to a static pressure of 58 PSI from the elevated tank but pumping causes increases in the pressure as well as changes in how the water flows through the system.
The increases in pressure causes the weak points in the piping to be stressed to the point they rupture or break leading to the many leaks last week. To repair some of these leaks, the crews had to open several fire hydrants to reduce the pressure on the line to enable repairs to be made. This increase in water flow causes turbulence in the water mains thus causing some of the water discoloration that many of you have experienced.
The patience, consideration, and understanding of our citizen’s is greatly appreciated during this past week. The elevated water tank is back in service and providing water to the system and the system has stabilized. The crews have a few remaining leaks to repair from last week. If you are still experiencing discolored water, please use outside faucets to flush your system.
The Town of Victoria is striving towards upgrading of water and sewer infrastructure throughout town, but this will take time. Again, the town is very appreciative of the patience and understanding of our citizens over the past several days.