Health Dept. Steps In Concerning Water Emergency in Mahopac
A public health emergency was in the making according to Interim Health Commissioner Michael Nesheiwat, MD. On Thursday, with the Chateau Ridge well water system in Mahopac barely functioning and with no hope of immediate repair, County Executive MaryEllen Odell authorized an emergency delivery of 6,000 gallons of water to be delivered to the water storage tanks for Chateau Ridge.
“We have been monitoring the overall situation,” explains Dr. Nesheiwat. “From a water safety perspective, the water quality has been fine. This week all thirteen water districts serviced by Forest Park Water Company had been put on water conservation restrictions until further notice in order to avert a potential major water outage. Up until now, only some districts and their residents have had to contend with water shortages, resulting from the various problems with the water systems.”
“With this health emergency, we needed a short-term and a long-term solution,” said County Executive Odell. “We needed water out there immediately and we got it there in a matter of hours. I have further called upon our law department, and with the assistance of Senator Terrance Murphy, we have reached out to the New York State Public Service Commission to help expedite the sale of Forest Park Water Company that has allowed this unacceptable situation.” The sale to United Water Company is currently slated to take place in September.
On Thursday, one of the two wells at the Chateau Ridge water supply stopped producing water. Forest Park Water Company could not arrange for repair because their payment could not be guaranteed, causing an emergency situation. When the functioning well could not keep up with demand, Mr. Cody Barticciotto, from CEMCO, the current water supply operator put in overtime. According to residents, Mr. Barticciotto spent two nights at the Chateau Ridge pump house trying to maintain the system. Additionally Henry Boyd, of Henry Boyd Well Drillers, has stepped in at the request of the health department, to provide an emergency repair without knowing when payment would be made.
As of early Friday afternoon, workers from Boyd Well Drillers had replaced the well pump and removed one bad section of line of the broken well. Currently this well is producing 60 gallons a minute. As of 3 p.m., both wells are functioning and the system is back on line.
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