Water discoloration alarms Lake Charles neighborhood - KPLC

Water discoloration alarms Lake Charles neighborhood

LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - Residents in a Lake Charles neighborhood are filled with concern as their water has not been clear for close to a year now.

“We started getting one or two houses with yellow water and then it became really dark, almost like a brown. And, uh, it has continued on every week, one or two houses getting it, then maybe six or eight houses getting it,” said Romero.

Mike Romero is a member of the homeowners association, and he said after reaching out to the city and to the water company, the problem still persists.

“We have homeowners here that have children, we have one family that has a needy child, and it is difficult to bathe a child in yellow, brown water,” said Romero.

Romero said the city water company will come out and try to help every single time they call, but he thinks the problem is bigger than the city thinks.

“Problem is, we are only fixing the symptom rather than the problem,” said Romero.

The City of Lake Charles said in a statement:

“In recent months the City of Lake Charles Water Division responded to some complaints of ‘brown’ or ‘rusty’ water in the Beau Blanc neighborhood. Our personnel addressed these complaints by assessing water infrastructure in the area and flushing the lines, generating an immediate resolution.

Automatic flushing units have been engineered and are on order for fabrication and installation. Area wide mainline flushing maintenance is also being coordinated. Additionally, the City of Lake Charles broke ground on a new $38.1 million water treatment plant this summer, located on South Park Road, northeast of Gauthier Road. This new facility will generate a 30 percent increase in total daily water production for the City, helping bolster water production, water pressure and water quality Citywide.

The City encourages any resident experiencing water quality issues to contact our Water Division by calling 337-491-1554.”

They offered to put automatic flushers on the water lines, but after reaching out to the department of environmental quality, residents believe the problem is rusty pipes.

“We buy bottled water to cook in, bottled water for coffee, gallons of water, we can’t use the water, we’re not going to use the water,” said Romero.

The DEQ told the neighborhood the water is safe to bathe in, but most are weary. Romero also believes there is a faulty fire hydrant.

“The city tells us, the water company tells us, they don’t have anything to do with this. We are not so sure,” said Romero.

Residents hope that no matter the problem, it is resolved as soon as possible.

The homeowners association thanks the water companies for being so responsive during this time.

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