MEXICO BEACH, Fla. – When Phillip Hall drove into the Mexico Beach water plant and saw the water tower laying on the ground storage tank, he knew the city’s water system was significantly damaged. “When I pulled into the yard and saw that tower down, I just knew,” said Hall, the Mexico Beach public works… Read more »
PORT ST JOE, Fla. – Rows of broken, blue watermain pipe lay alongside the highway on Cape San Blas while crews dig trenches for new water and wastewater line. The storm surge from Hurricane Michael tore the water main for Lighthouse Utilities and the Port St. Joe wastewater collection system out of the ground, but… Read more »
WEWAHITCHKA, Fla. – Hurricane Michael left the city of Wewahitchka, Fla. completely without water and wastewater service when it made landfall on October 10th. Assistance from the Florida Rural Water Association helped restore service to the damaged community. “We were down and down hard,” said Michael Gortman, city administrator for Wewahitchka. “We had no power…. Read more »
PORT ST JOE, Fla. – When Hurricane Michael made landfall, Port St. Joe water plant staff watched the wind hurl fifty-gallon steel drums from the yard into the tree line. “This is probably the safest building in the county,” said Larry McClamma, the Port St. Joe water plant manager. “I sat there and watched the… Read more »
PARKER, Fla. – Amber Parkle and her daughter had been without water for ten days, and they cheered when responders from the Louisiana Rural Water Association opened their meter and water poured from the outside faucet. “I’m ecstatic beyond anything I can describe,” the Parker resident said. “To get running water and to be able… Read more »
BAINBRIDGE, Ga. – Hurricane Michael brought unexpected damage to Bainbridge, Ga., carrying Category 3 strength winds over 100 miles from the shore, uprooting trees, knocking out power and disrupting water and wastewater service. “Bainbridge Georgia looks like a war zone. It may be several days before you see someone to help just please bear with… Read more »
CALLAWAY, Fla. – The streets of Callaway, Fla. are lined with piles of debris with power poles and transformers crumpled in the ditches. There is no electricity, but aid from the Mississippi Rural Water Association has helped restore water service and prevented sewer backups in the storm-ravaged community. “Well, we had this hurricane,” said an… Read more »
CAMILLA, Ga. – When Hurricane Michael roared through southwest Georgia, it left the city of Camilla, Ga. damaged, without power, and eventually without water. Assistance from the Georgia Rural Water Association helped restore water service. “I watched the radar images as the storm tracked northeastward to Camilla,” said Steve Sykes, Camilla’s Interim City Manager. “I… Read more »
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – When Hurricane Michael made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane and the most powerful storm to hit the continental United States in 14 years, emergency responders from the Florida Rural Water Association and Georgia Rural Water Association had already staged personnel and equipment to restore water service after landfall. Both the Florida… Read more »
In preparation of Hurricane Florence’s landfall, National Rural Water Association (NRWA) and its State Associations stand ready to assist with water and wastewater systems’ emergency needs. Hurricane Florence is predicted to be the most powerful storm to hit the Carolinas in three decades that will bring high winds, heavy rainfall and massive flooding. “If the… Read more »