Posted on: February 24, 2022
*** As of 9:30am Thursday 3/3/2022 the boil water advisory has been lifted for all Ambridge Water Customers. See link below for details. ***
PLEASE NOTE: YOU MAY NOTICE WATER DISCOLORATION, SMALL DEBRIS AND/OR SEDIMENT IN YOUR WATER WHEN FIRST USING SINKS/FAUCETS/SPIGOTS AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME. THIS IS NORMAL. WE RECOMMEND LETTING THE COLD WATER RUN FOR A FEW MINUTES AND THE WATER SHOULD CLEAR UP.
Update as of 2:00pm Wednesday 3/2/2022
**PLEASE NOTE: THE BOIL WATER ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT F OR ALL AWA CUSTOMERS**
In order to have the boil water advisory officially lifted, the PA DEP requires two rounds of clean samples taken at least 12 hours apart.
AWA OPERATION STATUS:
Everything continues to operate as it should at AWA’s Treatment Plant. We have excellent water levels at all of our storage tanks.
BOIL WATER ADVISORY STATUS:
What everybody is wanting to know: When will the boil advisory be lifted? As of 2:00pm, Wednesday we have learned that the first round of sample results AWA gathered and submitted came back & every one of them passed. This is great news. In order to officially have the boil water advisory lifted, a second round of clean samples must be achieved. AWA has already gathered and submitted that second round of samples for testing on Wednesday morning. The results typically take a little more than 24 hours to be released, so sometime late Thursday morning, we should learn the results of the second round of samples. If they all pass, and there are no other setbacks, the boil advisory (potentially) can be lifted at that time. If any of them do not pass, and/or we have to deal with any setbacks, we’ll need to start the sampling process over again.
UPDATING OF STATUS:
A Swift911 alert was sent out simultaneously with this update. (Wednesday 2:00pm).
Once we learn the results of the second set of samples (On Thursday), there will be another Swift911 alert sent with the results of the samples and any new information pertaining to the boil water advisory. AWA will also update all other channels of communication at that time.
DRINKING WATER AVAILABILITY:
Drinking water will be available at the Ambridge Fire Department on Wednesday from 12:00pm – 5:00pm or until supplies last. Drinking water is also available at the Harmony Township Fire Department and Baden Borough Building. Please call ahead to confirm hours of availability.
Update as of 4:00pm Tuesday 3/1/2022
CURRENT STATUS/FORECAST: Please note the boil water advisory remains in effect for all customers. In order to have the boil water advisory officially lifted, the PA DEP requires two rounds of clean samples taken at least 24 hours apart.
AWA Treatment Plant has been operating at full capacity now for over 24 hours. In addition to that, AWA is no longer utilizing any of our interconnects, meaning AWA Treatment Plant alone, is providing water to all AWA customers. Overnight Monday into Tuesday AWA was able to increase water levels at all of our storage tanks to normal operating levels.
There was a minor setback in the process for having the boil advisory lifted. One of the samples from the first round of testing came back with trace amounts of bacteria, which could happen for many reasons. AWA has already gathered another round of samples and submitted to the lab. To summarize, we originally thought we could potentially have the boil advisory lifted sometime Wednesday afternoon. That timeline has shifted to Thursday morning (potentially), as long as there are no setbacks.
Bottled drinking water for Ambridge Water Authority customers will be available behind The Ambridge Fire Department from 12pm – 5pm, Wednesday March 2nd, or as long as supplies last. Bottled drinking water remains available at Harmony Township Fire Dept & Baden Borough Building, as long as supplies last
We’ll continue to update as new information becomes available. We continue to thank everyone for their patience, understanding, and willingness to help, throughout these circumstances.
Update as of 2:00pm Monday 2/28/2022
CURRENT STATUS/FORECAST: As of approximately 10:00am Monday, AWA’s Treatment Plant began operating at full capacity again. All customers should have water service throughout AWA’s system. Please note the boil water advisory remains in effect for all customers. In order to have the boil water advisory officially lifted, the PA DEP requires two rounds of clean samples taken at least 24 hours apart. We just finished gathering our first round of samples and are in the process of delivering them to the lab for testing. As the testing requires at least a 24-hour incubation period, results are typically available approximately 24 hours after submitting. So, on Tuesday afternoon, we’ll get the results back from Monday, and then can gather and submit the second round of samples. On Wednesday afternoon, around the same time, we’ll get the results from the second round of samples and as long as all samples are within accepted DEP regulations, and we have no other setbacks, the boil advisory can then officially be lifted. This process is necessary to ensure that water can be safely consumed by all customers throughout our entire system.
We’ll be sure to update once we know results from each round of sampling and of course when we are able to officially have the boil water advisory lifted. We continue to thank everyone for their patience, understanding, and willingness to help, throughout these circumstances.
Update as of Sunday 2/27/2022
BOIL WATER ADVISORY: Remains in effect for all Ambridge Water Customers. At some point Monday 2/28/2022, AWA should be in position to start the process of having the boil advisory lifted. (more detail on that process below)
AWA OPERATIONAL STATUS: We have been operating at approx. 50% of normal capacity for 24 hours. Once significant repairs are completed at AWA Plant, we will be able to attempt to increase operations to full capacity.
WATER AVAILABILITY: We continue to have nearly all AWA customers with non-potable water service available at their homes. Bottled water is available for all AWA customers at Ambridge Borough Building, Harmony Fire Dept, and Baden Borough.
CURRENT STATUS/FORECAST: Multiple crews have been working since before 6am at AWA Treatment Plant to repair the significant damage done by the large scale discharge pipe breaking in two places. There have not been any setbacks as of yet. We anticipate the repairs to the line itself to be completed by late Sunday/early Monday. Once the repairs are completed to the line, we’ll have the ability to ramp up to full capacity. When the time comes that we’re ready to do this, we will have electricians, specialists in many areas, staff, basically everybody on location, so that we can handle anything that may go wrong. Keep in mind, this will be the first time a lot of this equipment is operated again, since it was submerged by water last Thursday. While we have had nearly every piece of equipment in the plant looked over and reinstalled or replaced if necessary, it still is different when it comes to going live and having all devices operate in sequence. At some point Monday, we should be able to attempt to increase the capacity of the plant & if all goes as planned, that is what will allow us to begin the process of having the boil water advisory lifted.
Just some insight into what it takes to have the boil water advisory lifted: 2 rounds of tests are required. The first round of samples can be gathered once we are back in normal operation (if all goes well – sometime Monday). Those samples are gathered throughout our system and tested by a certified lab. Results take approx. 24hrs. If all samples pass testing, then a second round of samples must be collected and submitted for testing (if all goes as planned this 2nd round of samples can be submitted as soon as we get the first round of samples back – so sometime Tuesday.) Then we just need the 2nd round of samples to pass testing and the boil advisory can be lifted. So if all goes according to plan, with no setbacks, it would be sometime Wednesday that we could potentially get results of the 2nd round of testing, and if all samples pass, the boil water advisory could be officially lifted for all AWA customers sometime on Wednesday.
There will be an update, along with a Swift911 alert sent out if/when we have successfully increased operations to full capacity. We can’t thank everyone enough for all of the help and understanding as we work through these truly unprecedented circumstances.
Update as of 6:00pm Saturday 2/26/2022
BOIL WATER ADVISORY: Remains in effect for all Ambridge Water Customers.
AWA OPERATIONAL STATUS: Early Saturday afternoon we began the process of pumping water again at AWA Treatment Plant. This is the first time we’ve pumped water since around 5AM Thursday morning.
WATER AVAILABILITY: We continue to have nearly all AWA customers with non-potable water service available at their homes. Bottled water is available for all AWA customers at Ambridge Borough Building, Harmony Fire Dept, and Baden Borough.
CURRENT STATUS/FORECAST: We are happy to report that on Saturday we were able to start pumping water again from AWA Treatment Plant. While this is definitely a step in the right direction, we’re still limited to using only 1 of 2 discharges, so we are only able to operate at around half of normal capacity. This is not enough (at this time), to have the boil water advisory lifted. However, after 24 hours, we’ll have a better idea of where we stand operating at half-scale.
Now that we’re at least partially operating at AWA Plant, the biggest problem holding us back from normal operation is the large pipe that needs repaired in two places on our second discharge. This is located in the pit at AWA’s Treatment Plant. It’s such a large-scale job that we had an outside company come in Saturday morning to evaluate what the repair entails. After studying the job scope, they are prepared to return to the location of the line break early Sunday morning and work together with AWA crews to make the necessary repairs. This is a very difficult job that requires incredible attention to detail. Safety will be the number one priority at all times throughout the repair. We are confident that working together, we’ll be able to successfully complete the necessary repairs to our infrastructure.
An update will be provided late Sunday afternoon as to the progress of this repair & the status of AWA’s operation, including the status of the ongoing Boil Water Advisory. We continue to thank our customers for their understanding, and all of the folks who have helped us work through these unprecedented circumstances, in countless ways over the last few days. We will continue to work around the clock until we are able to have this boil water advisory lifted and return to normal operations.
Update as of 6:00pm Friday 2/25/2022
Most all AWA customers should continue to have non-potable water at their homes for flushing toilets/etc. This is from the interconnect with West View water that we have been fully utilizing for a little over 24 hours now. All AWA customers remain under a boil water advisory. All water should be boiled before consuming. Friday at AWA Treatment Plant was nonstop repairs. Just about everything was submerged by yesterday’s flooding. All of the instrumentation needed to function was basically taken apart, dried, evaluated and put back together. From motors for pumps and compressors, 12 turbidimeters, our entire SCADA system, all individual filters and their electrical components, to the boiler that heats the plant itself. All of it had be gone over with a fine-tooth comb to see what still worked, what needed replaced, and so on, and that’s just in the basement. That doesn’t even get into the equipment in the “pit” at the very bottom of the plant. Needless to say, we are still working through this process.
In addition to all of that, we did get back the pumps we sent to be dried and evaluated yesterday. They seemed to be in working order, and they have been reinstalled. The actual line that broke in two places coming out of the pit, is in a very difficult place (elevation) to reach. AWA crews along with others continue to work to get the repair completed.
Everybody has done an incredible job to get to the point we are at right now. As of right now, Friday evening, it’s looking like we’ll be able to attempt to partially start-up the plant Saturday morning. Once we are able to start pumping water again, as long as all of the equipment is working properly, we’ll be able to begin gather samples and work towards having the boil advisory lifted and getting operations back to normal. Additional information will be available once we are able to start up the plant again.
Drinking water is still available for all Ambridge Water Authority customers at the Ambridge Borough Building located at 600 11th Street, Ambridge PA. Drinking water is also available at Harmony Township Fire Dept. and Baden Borough Building. For Saturday/Sunday it’s best to call your location before going there, to verify their hours of availability.
We will do our best over the weekend to continue to update our webpage @ www.ambwater.org and out automated phone recording, which can be heard by dialing 724-266-4847. For any significant updates to AWA’s operation and/or the status of the ongoing Boil Water Advisory, we will be sending out a Swift911 alert, along with updating all other fronts. We continue to thank you for your patience and for your ongoing support.
Update as of 10:00am Friday 2/25/2022
Most all AWA customers should continue to have non-potable water at their homes for flushing toilets/etc. All AWA customers remain under a boil water advisory. All water should be boiled before consuming. AWA crews are working continuously to complete repairs to the 12” main water line at our Treatment Plant. A lot of equipment was damaged during the flooding at our plant Thursday. We’re working to get those pumps and equipment either repaired or replaced and operational again, so that we can start pumping water again. Our goal is to be able to pump water from our Treatment Plant in some capacity, at some point on Friday. Once we gain back the ability to treat/pump water again, we’ll be to begin the process of events necessary to have the boil water advisory lifted. Water stations continue to be set up at Ambridge Borough building, Harmony Township Fire Dept, and at Baden Borough building. For all Ambridge Water Authority customers, including Baden Borough. We thank you for your continued patience and support. There will be another update by the end of the day Friday.
General update as of 4:30pm Thursday 2/24/2022
Status at Treatment Plant: Water has been pumped out of the 50+ foot pit at our plant. This pit was nearly overflowing early this morning. Water has been pumped out at least to the point where we could access our pumps at the bottom. In accessing the pumps, we needed to extract both pump motors and send them off to a local company who will begin the drying process, which is also part of the evaluation process on if they are still operational. Once dried out, the pumps can be evaluated to determine if they can be reinstalled for operation or if they need completely replaced.
This morning, we were unable to stop the water from our distribution system, and from our storage tanks above 16th street in Ambridge from flowing back into the plant (this is why it flooded). As of late this afternoon, two valves have been successfully built in to our 12″ lines coming from our treatment plant. The company that does this work is actually able to install the valves while there is still running water in the pipes, which is truly remarkable and extremely expensive. Both of those valves are in place now and that allows us to stop any/all water from flowing back into the treatment plant.
Being able to stop the flow of water coming back to our plant allows us to direct water flow into our Ambridge distribution system/customers. We are currently doing this by two methods. First, we’ve fully opened both of our interconnects with Westview water in Economy and we are directing water from the larger interconnect back to Ambridge (basically reversing how our system usually flows). Secondly, since we were only able to partially shut the water off from the storage tanks this morning, and throughout the day today, those storage tanks still have some water in them. We have opened the valves from the storage tanks above 16th street to basically use a gravity flow, which will direct water to most of our Ambridge customers. The combination of water from the Westview Interconnect along with water from our storage tanks should provide water to nearly all of our customers.
This water still needs to be boiled, and all Ambridge Water Customers are still under a boil water advisory. This water can be used to flush toilets, and can be used for anything needed that doesn’t involve consumption. Any water that is being consumed still needs to be boiled and all customers still remain under a boil water advisory. We do ask that all customers who do have water service, please use water as sparingly as possible & only use when absolutely necessary. We ask this of all customers who have water availability, until the boil advisory is lifted. Once we have further information on our pumps early Friday, we’ll be able to take the next steps in working towards having the boil advisory lifted.
As of all day today and into this evening, emergency response volunteers have been passing out bottled (drinking water) to Ambridge Water customers & also are filling up containers from a water buffalo in place, for non-potable water. This is being operated behind Ambridge Borough Building located at 600 11th Street, Ambridge PA 15003. This is only for Ambridge Water Authority customers. You will need to have your driver’s license or identification card with you. We will continue to provide drinking and nonpotable water until the boil advisory is lifted.
We thank you for your ongoing patience during this extended water outage. Updates will continue to be sent out via Swift911 message notification to all customers, be updated on our answering service which can be heard by calling, 724-266-4847, and updated and posted to our website www.ambwater.org, as they become available.