Petruccelli lauds response, calls for a hearing

“It’s always bad when you find yourself brushing your teeth with bottled water,” said Senator Anthony Petruccelli, who chairs the Senate committee that oversees the Massachusetts Water Resource Authority (MWRA).

With that said Petruccelli praised the work of the MWRA and Governor Deval Patrick for their quick response to solve the water crisis but still wants to get to the bottom of what went wrong and why.

“Over the weekend, I have had many positive conversations with the head of the MWRA (Fred Lansky) and agreed that instead of having a knee jerk reaction to the problem we should give the Authority the time to figure out what really occurred so we can discuss it in a meaningful way.”

Petruccelli would like to have his committee hold a hearing in the future so state officials, the public and the MWRA can discuss the water leak, the causes and whether it can occur again in the future.

Also, very important to Petruccelli, is figuring out who is going to pay for the recent fix of the water supply line and any future repairs that need to be made to ensure this ‘catastrophe’ doesn’t occur again.

“It should not be put on the back of the consumer,” said Petruccelli. “I want to make that very clear.”

The leak was discovered at 11 a.m. Saturday morning in a MWRA water supply line in Weston. The leak forced a boil order for nearly two million residents in Boston and the surrounding areas.

By Tuesday, the MWRA notified Mayor Thomas Menino that the drinking water in East Boston and the rest of the City was safe for consumption. However, the cautioned that residents and businesses must flush their household plumbing by running water for at least 1 minute before resuming regular use.

“I would like to thank the residents of Boston, the city’s emergency responders, and our local leaders for their cooperation and collaboration during this water emergency,” said Menino. “We have once again shown that Boston is a strong and resilient community that works together to get through a crisis.”

The MWRA is advising residents to “flush” their water. Flushing household and building water lines includes interior and exterior faucets, showers, water and ice dispensers, and water treatment units.

UP AND RUNNING AGAIN

The following directions are the MWRA’s guidelines to safely flushing water lines inside your home.

• Cold Water Faucets: Run tap water until the water feels cold, 1 minute or more, before drinking, tooth brushing, or using for food preparation.

• Hot Water Faucets: To clear hot water pipes and water heater of untreated water, turn on all hot water faucets and flush for a minimum of 15 minutes for a typical household 40-gallon hot water tank and 30 minutes for an 80-gallon hot water tank or larger. Never use water from the “hot” faucet for drinking, cooking, or other internal-consumption purposes. After this flushing, hot water is then safe to use for washing hands, and for hand-washing of dishes, pots and pans, etc.

• Refrigerators: Water dispensers from refrigerators should be flushed by at least one quart of water.

• Dishwashers: After flushing hot water pipes and water heater, run dishwasher empty one time.

• Humidifiers: Discard any water used in humidifiers, Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP), oral, medical or health care devices, and rinse the device with clean water.

• Food and baby formula: Be sure you have discarded any baby formula or other foods prepared with water on the days of the boil order. (If unsure of the dates contact your water Department.)

• Ice cubes: Automatic ice dispensers should be emptied of ice made during the boil order. Then, discard ice made over an additional 24-hour period to assure complete purging of the water supply line.

• Boston residents with questions or concerns should call the Mayor’s 24-Hour Hotline at (617) 635-4500 or through our website www.cityofboston.gov which will have extra staff on hand to help assist with. Additional information is also available on www.cityofboston.gov.

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