PENDLETON — A water main leak on the south side of Pendleton overnight prompted the town to issue a 72-hour boil water advisory beginning at 9 a.m. Sunday.
“It’s a new water line,” town manager Scott Reske said of the leak in the area of State Roads 67 and 9.
Reske said it’s thought the leak started at about midnight and proceeded to drain the town’s two water towers of their contents, about 800,000 gallons of water.
The town learned about the leak when calls started coming in to its toll-free number for water service issues, Reske said. The first call came in at 5:43 a.m., concerning low water pressure.
The town proceeded found the leak and shut off the line, after which the water towers began to fill back up.
“Pressure will start to build up through the day,” Reske said.
“The Town of Pendleton, Indiana is under a BOIL WATER ADVISORY until further notice,” a town press release states. “The Town of Pendleton is announcing a Boil Water Advisory to customers served by the Pendleton Municipal Utilities due to a water main break at a construction site, which led to a loss of pressure in the distribution system.
“It is recommended that customers boil all water used for food preparation, teeth brushing, manual dish washing, ice making, and drinking until further notice. Customers are advised to bring the water to rolling boil for at least three (3) minutes, and let it cool before using. Ice which as been made after Friday, October 22, 2021, should not be consumed or used for drinking. Water may be used for bathing and washing without boiling.”
The town and Indiana Department of Environmental Management are monitoring the water system, the release states
The boil water advisory is a “precautionary measure and will be lifted after water service and quality are fully restored and water quality tests verify the safety of the water supply. The process is expected to take 72 hours.”
The town stated residents should call 888-491-8194 after hours/weekends or 765-778-2173 during business hours, if they experience any further problems.