Germantown water contamination: The latest updates - Commercial Appeal

Germantown water contamination: The latest updates

Germantown water restrictions to continue Saturday; water distribution events planned

Germantown water restrictions will remain in place Saturday as the city awaits testing results.

Germantown water customers remain under an order to use water only for flushing toilets, the city announced in a news release Friday evening.

Results from the first round of water tests were delayed but are now expected Saturday morning, the city said. Additional samples from a wider area will also be analyzed Saturday, with those results expected to be available late Saturday afternoon.

On Thursday, Germantown first advised residents not to consume the city's tap water. After a few residents reported their tap water had a strong odor, Germantown’s water department staffers determined a generator — which was powering the Southern Avenue water treatment facility during the current power outage — had been leaking diesel fuel into an underground reservoir.

During a news briefing Thursday evening, officials said that, at worst, 100 gallons of diesel fuel had leaked into the underground reservoir, which contains about 4.2 million gallons of water.

On Thursday, Germantown Fire Department deployed a hazardous materials response team to the Southern Avenue water plant, the city said. The leak was stopped and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation was called in to ensure the response met its standards.

According to the city, crews drained the affected reservoirs to a level that allowed a safe neutralizing agent to be applied early Friday morning. By midday Friday, reservoirs were refilled and water pumped into the elevated tower to address any residue in the system.

GERMANTOWN WATER: Germantown stores and residents still without water; no update on when water will be safe

Work was conducted with oversight from TDEC and Shelby County Emergency Management Agency. Initial samples were sent to a local lab, and the Shelby County Health Department is independently testing samples, the city said.Once the system is clear, additional information will be provided about what homeowners should do to ensure their water lines are clean.

The city also announced that bottled water (one case per car) will be available from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday at Forest Hill Elementary, 3368 Forest Hill Road.

Residents can also bring their own containers and fill with an unlimited supply of water at Bailey Station Elementary, 3435 Bailey Station Road in Collierville, from 9 a.m.-noon Saturday.