Tryon fixes three water breaks over weekend
Published 8:00 am Tuesday, June 12, 2018
UPDATE: The town of Tryon has rescinded its boil water advisory, based on laboratory analysis of water samples collected Tuesday.
Boil water advisory in effect until at least Wednesday
TRYON — Residents driving in the Harmon Field Road area Sunday could have either been blocked or witnessed spouting water up to 100 feet high.
Residents between Country Club Road and Little House Road were on a boil water advisory beginning Monday morning. That advisory is in effect at least until Wednesday.
The town of Tryon said once testing is clear, the public will be advised when the boil water advisory is lifted.
The town experienced three water line breaks over the weekend, with one on Meadowlark Drive off Warrior Drive Saturday, and two on Sunday in the Harmon Field Road area.
The first on Sunday afternoon was at the corner of Harmon Field Road and Highway 108 that produced shooting water.
The second break on Sunday occurred around 9:30 p.m. near U.S. 176 and Harmon Field Road.
Tryon Town Manager Zach Ollis said all three breaks were unrelated; it was just a stroke of bad luck with the timing.
Ollis said the first on Sunday was a valve that broke off, so all the water pressure caused the water to shoot up out of the pipe.
“They just had to get some pressure down and put a new piece on,” Ollis said.
Ollis said the town has repairs such as water line breaks budgeted and has budgeted more for next fiscal year for items such as new water meters. He said the most costly thing for the town with repairs such as water line breaks is overtime for employees. The town keeps a stock of parts for issues such as what occurred on Sunday with the valve breaking, so Ollis said it is just a matter of getting out there and putting the new parts on.
“At the end of the day, we’ve got guys that have put in 10-15 in overtime,” Ollis said.
Water was restored to the Harmon Field/U.S. 176 area just before 10 a.m. Monday.
The town sent messages to customers saying there may be air and debris in the water lines, but the town opened a hydrant at Harmon Field to help clear the lines.
The boil water advisory notice was sent to customers in the area of Harmon Field Road and U.S. 176 from Country Club Road to Little House Road because there were periods of low pressure and outages in the system because of the water main break Sunday night.
Periods of low or no pressure in the system increases the potential for bacteria into the water system.
Customers in those areas are advised to boil all water used for human consumption, including drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes and any food preparation. Vigorous boiling for one minute is suggested to kill any disease-causing organisms that may be in the water.