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chrispybobispy t1_iy8g7za wrote

I'm all for ripping on Texas but this is just them following epa procedure correctly. Mechanical fails happen anywhere, anytime a watersystem is depresurrized a boil water advisory is put in place until bacterial tests are taken and come back clean and has nothing to do with what's in the water itself.

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conker1264 t1_iy95uih wrote

Yeah they sent the notice hours after it happened because they weren’t even sure it needed a notice at first because it was for such a short amount of time. But the notice can’t be removed for 24 hours legally. This was nothing but a precaution

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CertifiedWarlock t1_iy8zmik wrote

This shit happens all the time where I live in NY. Nasty brown water is also quite common.

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Coarch t1_iy8hp7n wrote

Was this the case in Texas?

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ughhhhh420 t1_iy8kqin wrote

Yes. A transformer blew at the city's main water plant, which was replaced within a few hours. No one probably would have noticed or cared about the boil water advisory, which is an EPA mandated thing, but for the fact that so many people on the internet are desperate to show how their political party is good and the other party is evil.

Which is particularly idiotic in this case because Houston has been run by democrats for at least 7 years and this is an entirely local issue.

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Rbespinosa13 t1_iy8n0dm wrote

Yah I had something like this happen in my dorm in college. Shit happens and the fact that a boil water advisory was put out is a good thing. It shows that these issues are caught quickly, the public gets notified ASAP, and that things can get back to normal quickly. I’d prefer that over “oh shit, it’s been like this all day and we just found out”

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PM_ME_GLUTE_SPREAD t1_iy8udip wrote

A boil water advisory is required any time pressure drops below 30 psi as per the EPA. Any state requirements supersede that as long as they are <30. My state, for instance, puts their minimum psi at 20.

99% of the time, when we have a main break, everything comes back fine and safe, but we are required to issue the boil water notice.

It takes 2-3 days to get the bact results back, depending on how busy the lab we use is. But in most cases, it’s completely fine.

Edit: I actually had it backwards. The EPA minimum is 20 psi. My states is 30 psi.

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_dinoLaser_ t1_iyaw51g wrote

Houstonian here. There’s only been two Republican mayors in the city’s history, and the last one ended his term in 1982.

A transformer blew, and then the backup transformer blew. It’s fishy, and everyone here is pretty cranky and suspicious about it, but this had nothing to do with the state’s power grid.

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silicon1 t1_iy97cad wrote

I think Texas has shown us over the past years that they aren't proactive in preventing utility failures or even winterizing them properly but i'm sure it's just political right?

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bigboilerdawg t1_iy9hebl wrote

Both the main transformer and the backup transformer blew. How exactly could the water plant be more "proactive"? The point of having the backup is that you can use the main transformer for it's full service life, and replace it when it actually fails. This was a freak occurrence.

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