The issue stems from Wednesday’s power outage and cold temperatures, which caused pipes and valves to freeze.
She started her morning as usual, waking up at 2 a.m. to deliver newspapers.
By the time she got back four hours later, Hedstrom realized her home was without power.
Then she took her boyfriend to work, and her kids with her to stay warm since the house’s temperature began to quickly drop.
"I went to go shower and do the dishes, and the water was kind of trickling out," she explains.
Cottonwood didn’t have any water either."
Mayor Brad Robinson says city crews took steps to override the power outage, bringing in back-up power to pump water from the ground storage facility to the water tank around 7 a.m. Wednesday.
However, cool temperatures caused an additional issue for pumps and valves running to the water tank.
Carterville Mayor Bradley Robinson says the city’s Water and Sewer board will meet on February 7.
Those opposed, fear it could cause problems to pump water when there’s no power to the sewer lift station.