Jackson Free Press

See 7 p.m. updates posted in comments.

Gov. Haley Barbour declared a state of emergency for the city of Jackson today due to water main breaks that have disrupted water service across the city. Speaking at a noon press conference after Barbour's announcement, Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. said that the city has suffered roughly 70 water line breaks since Wednesday of last week, when freezing temperatures began taking their toll on the city's infrastructure.

"One of the problems that we're having is that we cannot isolate where a particular break is causing a disruption in service to a particular area," Johnson said. "The breaks are so massive and so extensive across the city that (water) pressure all across the city has been affected. Those areas that are on high ground are being affected first."

Jackson Public Schools and Jackson State University both closed early today because of low water pressure, and city officials have issued a boil water notice for the entire city. Barbour also ordered state offices in Jackson closed and gave non-essential state employees a half-day. His annual State of the State speech, originally scheduled for tomorrow, has been postponed to Thursday at 6 p.m.

Johnson said that the Public Works Department has already repaired many breaks. Crews are working in twelve-hour shifts, he added.

Jackson's water mains vary in age, with some nearly 100 years old and other less than 20 years old. While the city needs to upgrade its infrastructure, aging pipes should not take all the blame for the breaks, Johnson said.

"(Do) we need water lines and sewer lines replaced? Of course," Johnson said. "But that's the case in every city. The weather has brought this particular problem on us, not necessarily the condition of our lines."

Previous Commentsshow

Just in from the city, verbatim: Water System Update: Kroger Donates Water The city of Jackson announces that the Delta Division of Kroger Stores has donated water for distribution to the citizens of Jackson. Water will be distributed beginning at 3:00 p.m., Tuesday, January 12, 2010, at MetroCenter Mall (3645 Highway 80 W.) in the old Dillard’s parking lot. Kroger is providing a limited quantity of water per vehicle while supplies last. Residents may drive up for a water pick up. This water distribution is for Jackson residents only and no businesses may participate. Water Conservation for Discretionary Water Users Mayor Johnson is also reminding residents to continue to conserve water as much as possible and he also asks businesses that are discretionary water users such as car washes, laundromats and details shops to join us in conserving water during this critical time by reducing operations as much as possible.

DonnaLadd

Jan 11 2010

One more: Police Department Changes Due to Water System Police Headquarters at 327 E. Pascagoula will be closed to the public until further notice. In order to continue service, citizens may visit either Precinct 3 at (3925 Northside Drive) or Precinct 1 at (820 Copper Road) between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. until further notice. Phone No. for Precinct 1 is 601-960-0001. Phone No. for Precinct 3 is 601-960-0003. The 911 Center will not be affected. The Municipal Court will be open.

DonnaLadd

Jan 11 2010

Just in: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Byram and Terry Area Schools Impacted by Jackson Water Supply Raymond, Mississippi, January 11, 2010 As of 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Byram Middle School and both Gary Road schools were impacted by the water supply situation in Jackson.  At approximately 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday morning, a decision will be made regarding the opening of ALL schools in the Terry Feeder Pattern (Gary Road Elementary, Gary Road Intermediate, Byram Middle and Terry High).  If the water supply situation is not resolved in the Byram area, we anticipate closing all schools in the Terry High feeder pattern, to include Terry High School.  Currently there are NO water supply problems with any of the schools serving the communities of Bolton, Edwards, Learned, Raymond, or Utica. As of now, we fully anticipate that ALL schools in the Raymond High School feeder pattern that serve these communities will be open on Tuesday. As always, we encourage our families to sign up for E-Alerts on our district web site for the fastest notification by email and/or text message. Contact:
 James Mason Phone: 601-857-7012 Fax: 601-857-2003 E-mail:  jmason@hinds.k12.ms.us

DonnaLadd

Jan 11 2010

From MEMA: MEMA Assists Mississippi Counties with Water Needs due to Cold Weather Pearl – The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency is providing Tunica and Hinds counties with several pallets of bottled water due to water emergencies related to our cold weather. Yesterday MEMA personnel delivered three pallets of water to Tunica County after water tanks threatened to run dry. Today Tunica County officials are taking up to three pallets of water for distribution to local residents while Hinds County is taking two pallets for use at the Hinds County Juvenile Detention Center and the Hinds County Jail. Each pallet contains more than 1,700 bottles of water. Tunica County Emergency Management first reported the water shortage to the State Emergency Operations Center Saturday and believes it is due to too many residents leaving water running to avoid freezing pipes. This afternoon Governor Haley Barbour declared a State of Emergency for the City of Jackson due to water problems. The recent freezing weather has led several water main breaks causing water outages throughout the city. The National Weather Service says high temperatures will be above freezing for the rest of the week but overnight lows through Thursday will be below freezing in some areas. Residents in both Hinds County and Tunica County are asked to conserve water where possible. MEMA will continue to provide updated information as necessary.

DonnaLadd

Jan 11 2010

I like Harvey, but: "The weather has brought this particular problem on us, not necessarily the condition of our lines." Um, other municipalities have been dealing with the same weather and have not lost water service to this degree. I really don't like excuses in times of crisis.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 12 2010

The condition of Jackson's water lines is one of those campaign lines that gets brought out and put back in the closet. Although the rate Jackson's replacing them, I'm surprised there's anything left that's old.

Ironghost

Jan 12 2010

Well, he is the only politician I've ever heard around here obsess about the condition of our infrastructure, and how no one wants to pay for it (as he should), but I'm not sure exactly where that remark came from. To me, it's yet another argument for payment in lieu of taxes. The state wants to use Jackson, but not help us pay for the basics. Of course, a lot of people here don't want to think about paying for the basics, either.

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

I understand that some of Jackson's infrastructure is over 100 years old and things like this will happen, especially when you consider the typical soil condition we have in central Mississippi. Considering, as a citizen of Jackson, I would rather see my paid taxes going towards upgrading the city's infrastructure than some of the things that are getting so much attention in Jackson that will likely not take place for many years to come, ie new levees. I wonder how much it costs the city and the state to completely shut down all offices in Jackson due to the water crisis.

chip

Jan 12 2010

I agree that the state should help maintain Jackson's infrastructure at least some, since they do use it quite frequently. Don't even get me started on the Hwy 51/State Street maintenance debate.

chip

Jan 12 2010

I know there are a lot of complicated factors involved, and that it's wrong to blame this crisis on the mayor or any individual. I just don't like to hear the mayor blame the weather. Cold weather is a reality of life. An entire city of this size going without water, possibly for a week... that's not supposed to happen.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 12 2010

I guess he should have come out and blamed the state Legislature for not helping us get taxes in lieu of all the non-profit land. I doubt that would have gone over very well in the middle of it. For the record, he is also blaming yazoo clay.

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

Why not blame Mark McGwire, too? :) I just want to hear what they are going to do to fix it, and when... or if they don't have those answers yet, an honest statement to that effect will suffice for now (and he did make such a statement). Really, I am more concerned about the political nature of such a gaffe than anything. I like Harvey, I voted for him, I want him to succeed. But saying it's the weather's fault, when all the municpalities around Jackson seem to be doing okay (and I know there are additional reasons for that), is just not good.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 12 2010

Ladd/Ronni, I'm posting this here as well as the other article because I don't want any of my peeps getting in *hot water* water pressure alone is not sufficient to remain open as a food service facility. The Health Department must receive written documentation as to the corrective actions being put in place under the boil water alert, and then will give restaurants the okay to remain open. More information, including the form to use and where to fax it, is available at http://www.msra.org or by contacting me at gradygriffin@msra.org

GradyGriffin

Jan 12 2010

Grady, I love you to death, but I'm changing your screen name; it screws things up every time!

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

I'll tweet your message, too.

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

name me what you will ;) I DM'd y'all yesterday, I thought. follow @MHRA

GradyGriffin

Jan 12 2010

Slammed over here. Sorry if we missed it. Will put out your handle.

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

Yazoo clay is a safe scapegoat. :)

Ironghost

Jan 12 2010

Scott, I think you're missing the point. The blame for Jackson's crumbling infrastructure is a *huge* conversation and probably not appropriate for the middle of the crisis. No matter; I'm just bored with this particular tangent. Too much to do.

DonnaLadd

Jan 12 2010

Record low temps + old cast iron water mains (25-75 yrs old) + Yazoo Clay + freeze/thaw = A huge mess. On a positive note, this crisis could work in Jackson's favor when hitting the Feds up for grant money in the near future.

Jeff Lucas

Jan 13 2010

Ok, third day with no water. Any word on when they might get this fixed?

WMartin

Jan 13 2010

MPB talked to city spokesman Chris Mims this morning, who reported that there had been about 105 water main breaks and about 30 were left to be repaired. We had full pressure this morning in Fondren; of course, you're still supposed to boil water and I don't know what the advice is for showering -- I just ran the water hot for a few minutes before stepping in and taking my chances. Oh, and they reiterated the water distribution again today at Metrocenter at 3pm.

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

I'm hopeful that it will be resolved by this weekend. Even if they can get all or 90% of the breaks repaired by Friday and get full pressure back into the system, don't they still need a day or so to disinfect the lines and get clearance from MDEQ before they will declare it safe for consumption?

Jeff Lucas

Jan 13 2010

UM.....There is NOT full pressure all over FONDREN. Maybe at where you are itodd. I am STILL without water. I agree with you wholeheartedly Scott. I'd rather the Mayor not offer any reasoning at all if he's going to say the weather did it. My goodness, we're not idiots. Is Jackson the only city in Mississippi that experienced this freeze? NO. Yet these other cities are functioning while we are NOT? And I know Johnson is highly favored over here so I'm not going to get all into the man, the mayor. But I don't care who it is speaking, publiclly, that is a ridiculous charge to make. I don't see how anyone could deny that.

Queen601

Jan 13 2010

UM.....There is NOT full pressure all over FONDREN. Maybe at where you are itodd. I am STILL without water. I said WE had pressure and *I* took a shower. I guess I said it wrong. I agree with you wholeheartedly Scott. I'd rather the Mayor not offer any reasoning at all if he's going to say the weather did it. My goodness, we're not idiots. Is Jackson the only city in Mississippi that experienced this freeze? NO. Yet these other cities are functioning while we are NOT? Because we're the big city with the old water system, using aging pipes, and we had an uncharacteristically long, hard freeze. For perspective: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/18/us/18water.html I guess the flip-side is WHAT ELSE do you think the problem is? Are you saying the weather DIDN'T do it? The pipes burst because of a defect in the mayor's character? I just don't even understand the train of thought.

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

The pipes burst because of a defect in the mayor's character? That is simply ridiculous. I didn't say anything like that. The city hasn't up to this point offered the pipes the attention they need to survive a freeze of this magnitude and thus, here we are. And I am not going to get any deeper into that because obviously understanding isn't the point of this conversation. **And I read what your post said about U taking a shower and I responded to that. I don't see why you felt the need to respond again with emphasis on what you previously stated.*** Anyhoo.....on a way more important note, I think the City of Jackson should be commended. The workers have been making great strides and doing the very best they can. This is clearly a huge job. Also, thanks to the other cities who have contributed in any fashion to our unreadiness.

Queen601

Jan 13 2010

**And I read what your post said about U taking a shower and I responded to that. I don't see why you felt the need to respond again with emphasis on what you previously stated.*** Because you started with "UM..." and went on to suggest I had somehow said there was full pressure all over Fondren. Just making myself clear. (If you weren't using "UM..." in the universal blogging way to mean "No, you dipsh!t..." then I apologize! ;-)

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

:-) Guess I shouldn't have used "Um".

Queen601

Jan 13 2010

Ladd, I love ya, but I'm pretty sure that, while I might have missed your point, I didn't miss mine... and to me, far from being a tangent, it's crucial to this discussion. First, though... no one is blaming Harvey Johnson for the fact that the pipes burst. And it seems like the city is doing yeoman's work at getting the crisis resolved. Kudos... that's what they should be doing. But it is absolutely essential to look at why this happened, and while it might be a huge conversation, that conversation has to happen somewhere and sometime. As you often say, I am pretty sure that we are all capable of holding more than one thought in our head at once. We can address the immediate crisis while also beginning the process of ensuring that this never happens again. iTodd, this comment: "I guess the flip-side is WHAT ELSE do you think the problem is? Are you saying the weather DIDN'T do it? The pipes burst because of a defect in the mayor's character? I just don't even understand the train of thought." ...is baffling to me. No one ever said the Mayor's character had anything to do with it. To me, this whole thing is much like what happened with Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, albeit on a far less severe scale. Katrina might have been the proximate cause of the disaster in N.O., but the *real* cause was the failure of the levees, which was due to decades of neglect, unheeded warnings etc. But for a strong levee system, KAtrina would have been a relative nonevent in New Orleans (the MS Gulf Coast is obviously a different story). So to me, it is absolutely appropriate to start the discussion about why *Jackson alone in this region* is enduring these kinds of problems right now. Birmingham, Little Rock, Memphis, smaller municipalities... to the best of my knowledge, they did not suffer outages like this. And words matter. People rightfully held Bush's feet to the fire for his tone-deafness in the wake of Katrina (along with his administration's subtantive failures). Believe me, I am not comparing Harvey Johnson to George W. Bush... that would be truly unfair. :) But for the Mayor to say that "the weather has brought this particular problem on us, not necessarily the condition of our lines"... I'm sorry, but that is not a starting point for dealing with this situation going forward.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 13 2010

But for the Mayor to say that "the weather has brought this particular problem on us, not necessarily the condition of our lines"... I'm sorry, but that is not a starting point for dealing with this situation going forward. Fair enough. I was a little snide with my line about the mayor's character because I didn't understand why he was being criticized for saying the weather had caused this problem. CLEARLY the weather caused this problem. (a.) This hard freeze was way out of the ordinary. (b.) A hard freeze causes problems for cast iron water mains, and it is a very difficult budget priority to replace mains in a town that, statistically, doesn't go through a hard freeze like that all that often, hasn't been making its budget numbers in good times and probably hasn't prioritized infrastructure very well in the past four years, if not prior to that. And this town has perhaps-more-pressing infrastructure problems that need to be prioritized, like sewage. Having said that, I was not aware that they mayor had said it was MORE a problem with the weather THAN with the lines. If that's true, then it's probably not an elegant statement to make and does suggest tone-deafness. There's also no doubt that an expectation of running water is a fair one to have, particularly for personal health and for continued commerce. The fact that this COULD happen in Jackson will hopefully cause the citizenry (and, per our editorial this week) the Legislature to take these challenges a bit more seriously. (I refer us all back to the PILoT, sales tax disbursements, local options, etc.) I'm totally agreeing that we need to look forward to see what the priorities are and to shine light on infrastructure issues... I know our edit team is working on that now. I was trying to understand why there was so much froth about the mayor saying it was weather...I see now that you're reading it to suggest that he won't do enough about it in the future. Fair enough, we'll have to keep his feet to the fire. I will say that I don't think the surrounding counties fared better because they had a better plan to replace their aging infrastructure -- because I don't think they have the same aging infrastructure problems. Certainly the suburbs don't support the density in Jackson and, for the most part, their systems are probably quite a bit newer.

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

One other note -- I'm not an expert on the city's budget and I have a crappy memory even when it comes to things I DID know at one time, but I believe something like 8-10% of the city's budget has been committed to water issues -- at least, they were when I was attending city council retreats back in the early days of the JFP circa 2002-03. Again, I'm hoping we can get the staff to look into this from an historical perspective as well -- what we HAVE done as a city in terms of water as well as what the challenges are.

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

I appreciate that very substantive response. One note: I am not saying that Harvey's comment necessarily means that HE won't do what he can to address the infrastructure issues going forward. I am more concerned with the history of inertia surrounding the problem, and I just don't think that a suggestion that this was unavoidable -- which is something that I think was implicit in his comment -- is helpful. Also, I wasn't really comparing Jackson's situation to that of Madison, Pearl etc. Obviously those are not totally fair comparisons. But cities like Little Rock, Birmingham etc. are more analagous to Jackson, and I didn't hear anything about their losing water to this degree. I look forward to the JFP doing their usual excellent journalistic work in looking at Jackson's infrastructure and how to improve it in an admittedly nightmarish fiscal climate.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 13 2010

There has been a lot of buzz about our infrastructure for years, "everybody talks about the weather, but no one wants do anything about it". The bottom line is that we have an expensive problem that needs to be fixed. We need to bite the bullet and pass some type of bond to do this. If the feds or state help great; however, we can't rely on that. I know everyone hates to be taxed; however, its likely that if we have comparable winters to this year in the future this will contiune to reoccur. We need to fix it once and for all.

Powerman

Jan 13 2010

Alone, alone, all all alone Alone in a dry city and never did the mayor look on This soul in sympathy. Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink: Water, water everywhere and all the polls did shrink.

revdrstewart

Jan 13 2010

State street between duling and fondren street (including the section between state and oxford along mitchell) has been shut down since this morning workin on the break at mitchell/state. :( big hole in street update- just asked the hole guard since the all the city guys vacated (for lunch I guess?) and they got this one fixed, just waiting for hole filler. He expects this sections water to be back on after a while, with low pressure.

SELock

Jan 13 2010

The good news, I suppose, is that people are going to talk conversations about finding basic infrastructure problems in Jackson more seriously. I hope. It is time to focus on the basics. And that means the whole state that feeds off us here. Time to put politics aside and get down to the business of fixing our infrastructure problems. That's the whole point, from where I sit. We had a tad of water creeping through this a.m. at the office.

DonnaLadd

Jan 13 2010

I do blame the Mayor, that is where the buck stops. He can try to pass it on to god if he chooses. Good luck with that Harvey. I know it's not his fault personally, but it's his job to run the city. Well the city isn't running and there isn't anyone else to blame. There should be a plan in place to replace aging infrastructure before it causes a catastrophic break down in basic city services. Now not only are we having to do the expensive repairs but we are losing money from the lost commerce of businesses having to shut down. The reason we have government is to provide basic services for the city. Where are our leaders priorities? Our children are not being educated this week because of this problem, unless they go to schools outside of Jackson. What are the fees we pay to the city for water/sewer used for if not for the water/sewer system? Is this money diverted from that to other services?

WMartin

Jan 13 2010

Also, I wasn't really comparing Jackson's situation to that of Madison, Pearl etc. Obviously those are not totally fair comparisons. But cities like Little Rock, Birmingham etc. are more analagous to Jackson, and I didn't hear anything about their losing water to this degree. Good point. Worth looking in to.

Todd Stauffer

Jan 13 2010

Atlanta, Knoxville, Chattanooga and Dallas had quite a few breaks over the past week as well.

chip

Jan 13 2010

Chip, tell us more. Was it on the level of what we experienced here? This is not a trivial question. It may be that, in the grand scheme and given competing priorities, desperate fiscal times etc., a Southern city cannot expect to be completely immune to these types of events. I am not ready to accept that conclusion, though.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 13 2010

Atlanta - 26 water main breaks as of yesterday http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/atlanta-ice-crews-struggle-272679.html Knoxville - 49 water main breaks as of yesterday http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2010/jan/12/cold-takes-its-toll-on-pipes/ Chattanooga - "A water main burst Monday morning on Dallas Road. Officials say there have been so many breaks that even supervisors are out working on repair sites." http://www.wrcbtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=11803752 Dallas - 105 breaks as of yesterday http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-burstpipes_12met.ART.State.Edition2.4b9d1df.html

chip

Jan 13 2010

Given those facts, I would say it's not too unusual that Jackson had an outburst of breaks, but I do think that Jackson has suffered from it far worse than any other city.

chip

Jan 13 2010

Interesting. Might have to revise my thinking. But we still have to figure out how to best deal with an aging infrastructure.

Scott Albert Johnson

Jan 13 2010

Water Issues in Jackson, COJ is currently replacing cast iron water lines with ductile iron water lines as funds permit through a planned program. This program was initiated and funded during the previous Johnson administration. I'm not sure how this program is being funded. I do know that water and sewer fees go into a restricted fund dedicated only to those systems. The removal and reconstruction of the water lines needing replacement due to age, or obsolete materials, will probably have to be financed through a revenue bond or general obligation bond, with the bond repayments coming from increased user fees. The State of MS sets limits on the percentage of bonded obligations a municipality can carry (10%, 15% or 20% of assessed property value). Pretty complicated isn't it. Jackson has recently spent 55(?) million dollars to expand the OB Curtis and renovate the JH Fewell Water Treatment Plants to meet new DEQ and EPA requirements. These projects werre initiated and financed (Bonds?) and completed during the previous Johnson Administration. COJ, as well as most urban cities in the US, is under an order from DEQ and EPA to upgrade its' waste water system. Issues such as reporting waste water overflows, and separating water runoff inputs from sanitary serwe inputs by installing separate lines for each. Please be advised that the above are my incomplete, elementary understanding and/or misunderstanding of the true facts. I offer these generalizations just to keeep the conversation and investigation going. For the real deal ask Mayor Johnson or his staff.

FrankMickens

Jan 13 2010

ALERT, Please be forewarned that prior to the recent Wall Street crash the major investment banks have identified the lack of political will to finance public works projects as an opportunity for these "Masters of the Universe" (per Tom Wolf's novel "Bonfires of the Vanities"..not the children's cartoon of the 80's) to push for privatization of public works, just as they did for private prisons. I'll go back and find the link for the article that brought this to my attention. These firms have already purchsed both the infrastructure and the drainage basins in South America rendering the population powerless to fight back. These firms have already started purchasing small private water association in the US, with disaterous results. I'll provide the link for those articles also.

FrankMickens

Jan 13 2010

Agreed, Scott. Thanks for the info, Chip.

DonnaLadd

Jan 13 2010

[quote]I do blame the Mayor, that is where the buck stops. He can try to pass it on to god if he chooses. Good luck with that Harvey. I know it's not his fault personally, but it's his job to run the city. Well the city isn't running and there isn't anyone else to blame. There should be a plan in place to replace aging infrastructure before it causes a catastrophic break down in basic city services.[/quote]WMartin, I don't blame you for demanding answers and accountability from the administration about the crumbling infrastructure. One of my frustrations with this City as it relates to infrastructure is that it seems like for years the suits downtown spent more time reacting to problems instead of planning for them. These problems didn't start under HJ's administration, and more should have been done by previous mayors, but he is the one in charge now so the buck does now stop with him. The City has been replacing old water and sewer lines for several years, either as utility improvement projects or as part of road improvement projects, but more needs to be done. I'm sure the mayor and his staff are seriously considering options to prevent the kind of massive failures the City is going through right now. Perhaps they could provide you with information on their current and future plans during a community meeting in your ward if you are there to ask them.

Jeff Lucas

Jan 13 2010

Here are promised links to articles documenting recent forays of corporations into the privitazation of public works infrastructure..specifically water. http://www.alternet.org/water/144203/bailed-out_aig_forcing_poor_to_choose_between_running_water_and_food/ http://www.alternet.org/water/144020/how_limousine_liberals,_water_oligarchs_and_even_sean_hannity_are_hijacking_our_water_supply/

FrankMickens

Jan 13 2010