Jackson Free Press

Jackson may not have safe, drinkable water until later this week at the earliest, while some residents still lack sufficient water pressure.

Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba held a press briefing downtown yesterday, where Public Works Director Charles Williams gave an update on how a second issue with raw water filters at the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Plant delayed water-pressure goals from being reached. City officials had been struggling to reach their goal of 90 pounds-per-square-inch, which Williams hopes to see by the end of this week.

“We did have a minor setback yesterday with our raw water screens again, but the contractors have been working throughout the night to get that addressed.”

Williams explained that city officials were working to fix known issues with the plant when the winter storm hit, compounding issues of previously broken water mains around the city.

Need More Funds from More Sources

Williams mentioned the need for additional funding to repair Jackon’s aging infrastructure.

“When we talk about normal, I'm not sure that we will get back to normal,” Williams said. “That is why we are requesting funding from additional resources in order to help us address that.”

The mayor met with Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann this morning to discuss additional funding for Jackson’s systemic water problems.

The City charges a 1% sales tax which goes toward maintenance and upgrades for roads, drainage, sewage, and water, but the $15 million raised annually pales in comparison to Lumumba’s oft-cited $2 billion price tag. For his part the mayor had previously sent a letter to Gov. Tate Reeves requesting $47 million in state or federal aid.

Lumumba also thanked Birmingham, Ala., Mayor Randal Woodfin, among others, for that city’s contribution of 28 pallets of water to Jackson during the water crisis. “I'd like to take the opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to not only individuals, organizations, businesses and even cities,” Lumumba said. “Mayor Woodfin wanted us to know that the city of Birmingham loves us and supports the city of Jackson.”

Anyone looking to donate water or cleaning supplies to residents of Jackson may call 601-960-2324 or 601-960-1835.

Sampling for Contaminants Today

City officials are set to begin sampling water to test for contaminants today, and if two days of testing show contaminant levels below safety limits the boil-water notice may be lifted.

“Hopefully, that will start around Thursday of this week,” Williams said. “We still have a lot of work to do and in both water treatment facilities and also in our water distribution system. This brought to light a lot of issues that have been plaguing the city for some time.”

While water pressure is up across most of the city compared to last week, Williams noted that some higher-elevation areas are still without adequate pressure, including the area surrounding Forest Hill Road and Shannon Dell Drive.

Non-potable water is available for residents in that area today at Forest Hill High School, at 2607 Raymond Road, from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. this evening.

Email Reporting Fellow Julian Mills at [email protected].