Henrico replenished East End water reserves overnight as Richmond ramps up production
VENN
HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- On Wednesday, May 28, Henrico County announced that it was able to refill its reserve tanks overnight, which are temporarily providing water to its customers in the county's East End.
The announcement came Wednesday morning as Richmond continues its efforts to restore its water treatment plant to normal operation levels.
According to the press release, Henrico's water remains safe for consumption and use and the county is not subject to a boil water advisory, as pressure throughout the system remains normal.
Bentley Chan, Director of the Henrico Department of Public Utilities, said that water was rerouted to the county's tanks, estimating that the supply should meet residents' needs for at least one to two days.
"By successfully routing water from our Water Treatment Facility in western Henrico to our system of six tanks in the east end, we’ve ensured that these reserves are fully restored and able to meet the needs of our residents and other customers, as needed, for at least 24 to 48 hours," Chan said."
Chan said a variety of components, such as rainfall, helped to refill those tanks.
"Many factors, including the rainy weather and relatively low water use, helped in refilling these tanks," Chan said.
The county disconnected from Richmond's water distribution system Tuesday morning after Richmond city officials reported that the "majority of the city's filters had been clogged by excessive sediment in the James River, prompting a temporary suspension of operations at the Richmond Water Treatment Plant (WTP)."
That plant serves customers in Richmond in the City of Richmond and other regions including parts of Henrico.
"Henrico and Hanover had staff onsite as Richmond’s team was able to restore the city’s Ginter Park Tank and steadily increase water production. Henrico is appreciative of the cooperation and support of all our partners," Chan added. "We remain hopeful that this progress will continue and we’ll soon be able to get back to normal."
