RICHMOND, Va. — After facing several days without a reliable water supply in Virginia’s capital, Theresa Fulgham decided she could no longer wait. This shortage forced some residents to resort to melting snow just to flush their toilets. “We need a shower today. Enough is enough,” Fulgham, who works as a live-in caregiver, stated on Thursday as she took her client to a YMCA that had running water.
Tension was palpable among the population of Richmond, which is home to around 200,000 residents. Repair crews were working diligently to restore the city’s water system, severely impacted by a significant winter storm that struck on Monday. By Thursday morning, some residents began to see brown, murky water flow back into their pipes. However, officials warned it was unsafe to drink, even if the water appeared clear and suggested boiling it first.
City officials indicated that even though pressure was getting restored in a complicated urban water infrastructure like Richmond’s, it did not guarantee the safety of tap water. Residents were advised to continue boiling their water at least until Friday. Latoya Jones, a registered nurse, shared that her daughter used snow to fill the bathtub in an effort to flush the toilets. She also mentioned the purchase of paper plates to minimize water usage, remarking, “Washing dishes, that’s a joke right now.” Jones joked, “Our next family field trip will be to take a shower,” as she considered visiting a nearby high school with running water.
At several YMCA locations, more than 4,000 people who were not members have taken advantage of free hot showers in recent days, according to Jody Alexander, the organization’s head in Greater Richmond. Liz Canfield was among those benefitting from the service and expressed her gratitude, saying, “What a lovely experience,” while relishing her five minutes of hot water.
The city has initiated the distribution of bottled water at 11 different locations and is providing deliveries to elderly residents and those unable to reach these spots. Over 45,000 gallons of bottled water were distributed on Tuesday and Wednesday, while many residents also filled containers from a tanker truck. Susan Stevens stated she found herself repeatedly turning on the tap, forgetting that the water wasn’t running as normal. Miguel Vasquez echoed her sentiments, expressing his relief upon seeing water trickle from the sink for the first time in days, but he also raised concerns, “I am just wondering, hopefully, that there will be some clarity on why this happened.”
Mayor Danny Avula, who began his term just days prior to the outage, is equally curious about the situation. He explained that a power failure at the water facility contributed to the system breakdown, and that a backup battery system, designed to prevent such issues, had failed as well. Now that the water system is fully pressurized, tests for bacterial contamination have commenced, he noted in a press conference on Thursday. The boil-water advisory will be lifted once two rounds of tests approximately 16 hours apart yield negative results. “I’m as — or more — interested than anybody about how we make sure that this doesn’t happen in the future,” commented the mayor.
Theresa Fulgham, who has also been melting snow and utilizing bottled water for personal hygiene, indicated she was willing to give Mayor Avula some leeway regarding the situation. “We need to work on the infrastructure,” she said. “I’m not going to blame this on Avula, like I’ve seen a lot of people do, but improvements are necessary as the entire system needs an overhaul.”
This water crisis has extended its repercussions to Henrico and Hanover counties, which issued their own boil-water advisories shortly after Richmond’s troubles began. Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin acknowledged the growing anger and frustration among residents due to the crisis. The start of the legislative session was postponed due to the water outage affecting the Capitol, but Youngkin reassured the public, “There are a lot more important issues with this water crisis right now.”
