Residents may resume using Fremont’s water for drinking and cooking. After suffering from several direct lightning strikes early Thursday morning, Fremont’s water system lost pressure for about 30 minutes. When water pressure drops that low, the State recommends issuing a boil warning until the water is thoroughly tested.
Water employees from the Department of Utilities collected nearly 200 samples of Fremont’s water since Thursday and drove them to the Department of Health in Lincoln for testing.
DU General Manager, Brian Newton said he’s pleased with the results. He said the decision to recommend boiling Fremont’s water was not popular, but was absolutely necessary to protect the public until testing was complete. “Our employees take great pride in providing quality water and we want to keep it that way.”
Mayor Scott Getzschman thanked residents and businesses for cooperating with the City’s recommended boil warning over the past several days. “I know it was an inconvenience for many folks (especially over John C. Fremont Days), but the safety to the public was paramount. Fremont is known for great-tasting water and we didn’t want to jeopardize our reputation by providing anything less than the best.”
PREVIOUS COVERAGE:
Two separate lightning strikes knocked out power to the water system in Fremont Thursday morning.
As a result, the city wants all residents to boil their water for the next 24 hours.
The first lightning strike happened just after 2 a.m., knocking out the main source of power for the water system, according to Brian Newton, the General Manager of the Fremont Department of Utilities.
A half hour after that first strike, a second bolt of lightning knocked out the backup power generator.
The city got the system working again in about a half hour, and Newton says the system is working normally.
The boil order comes as a precaution. Fremont will get tests back on the water quality from the state in the next 24 hours, according to Newton.