WSSC Water has restored production at its Potomac Water Filtration Plant in Maryland, but an essential-water-use request remains in place for 1.9 million customers in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.
The plant returned to full production at about 5.30pm on Tuesday, following a major electrical failure that disrupted operations for much of the day. However, the distribution system is still rebuilding its reserves and officials say the situation remains critical.
Crews are operating the facility using a temporary internal power arrangement while work continues to restore its normal electrical configuration. WSSC Water said storage levels, which fell to critically low levels during the outage, were recovering on Wednesday morning.
The Potomac plant supplies roughly 70 to 75 per cent of the utility’s water. Its output is normally between 100 million and 120 million gallons a day, while WSSC’s Patuxent plant can produce about 90 million to 95 million gallons — below the average daily demand of approximately 170 million gallons.
WSSC Water has not lifted its request for customers to use water only when necessary. People are being asked to avoid outdoor use, including lawn irrigation, limit toilet flushing and postpone or reduce the use of washing machines and dishwashers.
The utility said the disruption was caused by an infrastructure and electrical failure, with no indication of malicious activity. It is continuing to work with power company Pepco as repairs are carried out.
Drinking water remains safe and there is no boil-water advisory. WSSC Water has warned, however, that low pressure, interruptions to service or the need for a boil-water advisory could still arise if storage levels do not fully recover or normal power is not restored.
Officials are due to assess the plant and the wider system later on Wednesday, September 30, before deciding whether the conservation request can be withdrawn.
