Waterbury lifts boil-water advisory for 15,000 homes and businesses

WATERBURY — City officials on Monday said thousands of residents must no longer boil tap water, six days after a water main ruptured on Tompkins Street and cut off service to multiple neighborhoods.  

The boil-water advisory for about 15,000 households and businesses was lifted at 4:25 p.m. after lab tests confirmed the water is safe to drink, according to Waterbury Mayor Paul K. Pernerewski Jr. 

“The lifting of the boil water notice marks the final step in our response to this emergency and is welcome news for our residents and businesses,” Pernerewski said in a statement. “I want to sincerely thank everyone for their patience and understanding over the past several days.” 

The city’s latest water crisis began on Tuesday morning when crews discovered a significant water main break near W.F. Kaynor Technical High School and expanded a few days later on Friday when another section of the transmission main failed. 

The disruption prevented a storage tank on Clough Road from being replenished, effectively cutting off water to the area. Crews worked for much of the last week to repair the damage and finished the work about 1 a.m. Saturday. 

Pernerewski said the South Central Regional Water Authority Laboratory tested samples taken throughout the city’s water system and confirmed they were negative for coliform bacteria and E. coli bacteria. 

The mayor said the water is now safe for drinking, cooking, food preparation, brushing their teeth, bathing and all other household purposes. He said residents are encouraged to run their faucets for a few minutes to allow clean water to flush their plumbing system. 

Waterbury has seen multiple disruptive water main breaks in recent months, in part due to aging infrastructure. About half of the city was left without running water for five days due to a large break in December. In February, officials reported an 8-inch water main break on State Street.