GREENVILLE, PA. Water system pump fails

The state has issued a boil-water notice for drinking or cooking water.
By HAROLD GWIN
VINDICATOR SHARON BUREAU
GREENVILLE, Pa. -- A new pump that was supposed to end Greenville's weeklong water shortage failed when it was turned on, leaving the water supply worse than before.
Maria Kerekes, office manager for Greenville Municipal Water Authority, said the new pump was installed and turned on around 7 p.m. Monday but immediately froze and stopped working.
The authority expected to run out of water overnight and asked the Pennsylvania National Guard to bring in five portable water tanks holding potable water, she said.
The tanks were set up at the Greenville fire station Monday but would be spread around the community today, she said.
The tanks will be replenished with water from Reynolds Water Co. as needed, she said.
Schools closed
The schools have been closed for today because they can't be supplied with water, Kerekes said.
The authority knew its old pump was failing several weeks ago and ordered a new one, but the old pump shut down before the new one arrived.
Kerekes said that a representative of the manufacturer of the new pump was on hand Monday to oversee its installation and actually turned the pump on, but it immediately failed.
It had to be pulled back out of the system, shutting the plant down temporarily. The authority went back to its temporary pumping measures using the fire department and a portable pump to draw water from the river and keep the plant operating.
Customers were asked to curtail any unnecessary use of water.
In the meantime, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection ordered the authority Monday to issue a boil-water notice to anyone drawing water from the authority's system.
There is concern about the potential for bacteria in the water going to the authority's 3,700 customers, said Kelly Burch, DEP regional director.
The authority's pump, which draws raw water from the Shenango River, failed Oct. 26, and the authority used pumper fire trucks and portable gasoline-powered pumps to move water from the river to the filtration plant to keep an adequate supply.
Clogged clarifiers
However, those pumps pulled in leaves and other debris that clogged clarifiers in the treatment plant, Burch said.
Clarifiers are holding tanks where chemically treated water sits before moving through the plant filters.
Burch said there is a possibility that microbes could be in the water, and people should bring tap water to a rolling boil for at least one minute to kill any bacteria before using it for drinking or cooking.
Kerekes said the was no evidence of bacteria, but there was some sedimentation showing up in waterlines from reservoirs running lower than normal.