As of Jan. 11, the boil advisories in Greater Richmond have been lifted. Click here for an explainer on flushing your pipes after a boil advisory.
Updated 3:30 p.m.: The City of Richmond announced shortly after 3 p.m. Friday that the first test of the water supply necessary to lift the boil advisory that has been in place since Monday afternoon had come back negative for bacterial growth.
The second test began early Friday afternoon, meaning the city could be on track to declare water safe for consumption around 1 p.m. Saturday if that test also comes back clean.
On the fifth day Richmonders lacked potable water, Mayor Danny Avula said while the city is making strong progress in restoring water works, the immediate priority remains successful completion of water testing and lifting the boil advisory.
The new timeline for safe, drinkable tap water? Saturday — at the earliest.
In his Friday press conference, Avula outlined the steps needed to ensure Richmond’s water supply is safe to drink. First, the water sample test conducted at 3 p.m Thursday must pass. Then, it must be followed by a second successful test sample taken hours later.
According to Avula, the city should have test results for the first sample around 3 p.m. Friday.
“Remember the second set of tests happened 16 hours after that first round, and so crews are out collecting those samples now, those should start cooking in the lab shortly,” Avula said.
According to Avula, each round of testing requires pulling multiple samples from multiple points across the entire distribution network. Once that is done, those samples are prepared and submitted to the lab to be placed in an incubator over 24 hours to see if there’s any bacterial growth.
“Once you get to that 24-hour mark, if there's no bacterial growth, that's deemed confirmed as a negative test and that water is safe for consumption,” he said.
Dwayne Roadcap, director of VDH's Office of Drinking Water, told VPM News on Thursday afternoon that the results from the certified lab sampling should be finished by Saturday.
As of 5 p.m. Thursday, the city said 19 of 22 filters and 5 of 8 water pumps are in service, with additional support from two temporary pumps. The volume of flowing water is well above the 45.5 MGD-average (million gallon-per-day) to support typical service needs for this time of year, with the reservoir above the city’s target goal for service delivery and system function.
“Given our experience from this past Monday, here are the steps that we have taken to bolster our staffing, to bolster our resources at the water plant, in an effort to just make sure that we can provide operational continuity,” Avula said.
The city said it’s taking steps ahead of the potential weekend snowfall:
- DPU employee shifts at the water treatment plant will include all trades (mechanics and electricians, technicians, instrumentation and control technicians, plant operators, internal engineers and senior management)
- Administrative support staff will work additional weekend hours.
- Support services will be at the water treatment plant, including engineers, wastewater staff, Virginia Department of Health staff and software and engineering consultants.
- Additional equipment has been delivered and installed: a new backup battery to supply the plant’s computer systems in the event of power disruption, as well as additional repair parts for filters.
- Supervisory visual inspections of all components of operations will be conducted.
- During each shift, there will be checklist roll-calls and process reviews across essential plant operation areas and duties.
- The plant emergency contact list has undergone a fresh update.
- A process for hourly status check-ins is being instituted.
- A snow removal readiness plan is being activated.
As VPM News previously reported, Gov. Glenn Youngkin said earlier this week that the state of emergency declaration is still in effect ahead of the coming storm.
The city’s bottled water distribution sites will remain open until the water system is fully functioning with 6,000-gallon portable water tanks operating out of Southside Plaza, Hickory Hill Center and Pine Camp Community Center.
In partnership with the state and with the support of the Virginia National Guard, the city is bringing in six additional 2,000-gallon portable water tanks for Powhatan Community Center, Midtown Green, Westover Hills, West End Library, Oak Grove Elementary and Ann Hardy Plaza.
Residents with the greatest need such as mobility and transportation challenges should call 311 for assistance.
