Germantown residents could be able to flush water lines as early as Thursday

Residents in some parts of Germantown could be able to begin flushing their water lines as early as Thursday, the city announced Wednesday evening.

In another video announcement posted to the city of Germantown's social media accounts, city administrator Jason Huisman said that they now know definitively that the generator servicing the Southern Avenue water treatment plant was the cause of the leak. The fuel leaked into the surrounding soil, and a small hole in a pipe that fed clean water into the water system was exposed.

"The diesel fuel in the soil at this location was entering a small 1.25-inch hole in a pipe feeding treated water to our underground reservoir," Huisman said.

Ensafe, the city's environmental consultant, was contracted Sunday and investigated the entire contamination source site. The pipe was repaired Tuesday, according to Huisman.

He said they are still working to determine "a more accurate assessment" of how much diesel overflowed, noting preliminary estimates were 50 to 150 gallons and the city had communicated 100 gallons given that range.

Huisman said the most difficult question to answer over the last six days was when residents can expect to use their water. The water has been deemed unsafe since July 20.

"Finding and eliminating the infiltration source into the underground reservoir was a huge step on Monday, and we took another leap forward with clear test results in the reservoir," Huisman said.

The city's hope is that it will be able to notify residents and businesses by location to start the flushing process of their own service lines. Huisman said this is to avoid losing pressure needed to power the water supply and maintain the fire suppression system.

"All that being said, if all goes according to plan, the answer to when the order will be lifted to commence service line flushing is that for some areas, it could be as soon as tomorrow with good test results and TDEC concurrence… and barring any unforeseen situations or additional, time-consuming requests, it could take up to several more days for us to get there," Huisman said.

The city also has added a Frequently Asked Questions page to its website regarding the water contamination. They are also asking residents to turn off their irrigation systems in preparation for water system flushing. This is to help build the water pressure needed for flushing effort.

Water distribution sites remain open for Germantown residents

Also on Wednesday, Germantown announced the water distribution site at Forest Hill Elementary School, 3368 Forest Hill Irene Road, would be open from 4-7 p.m. daily through Friday, 9 a.m.-noon Saturday and 1-4 p.m. Sunday. Residents can pick up one case of bottled water per car at this location.

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Residents also can bring their own containers and fill with an unlimited supply of water at Bailey Station Elementary School, 3435 Bailey Station Road in Collierville. The Bailey Station water distribution site is open the same hours as the site at Forest Hill Elementary.

Both water distribution sites are now accepting volunteers. To sign up, visit https://serve.volunteerodyssey.com/group/138033-Volunteer-Germantown.

Germantown officials continue to urge residents to sign up for the city's alert system. To opt in, visit Germantown-TN.gov/alert or text “alert” to 901-979-9955. Those who register via text must be sure to complete the registration process by clicking the link in the text reply.

Brooke Muckerman covers county government for The Commercial Appeal. She can be reached at Brooke.Muckerman@commercialappeal.com, and followed on Twitter @BrookeMuckerman

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Germantown water contamination: Latest updates on flushing systems