Running water returns to Walsenburg, but frustration remains

WALSENBURG, Colo. — Running water returned to most Walsenburg residents Wednesday, March 18 after the city’s water main break left residents without running water for nearly six days. 

“We're on day four. Still no indication of when it's going to end … very little communication, so it’s frustrating. Understatement,” said Lynn Calza, a Walsenburg resident, on March 16.

The city received a “high flow” alarm at 2 a.m. Friday, March 13, and went from losing 200 gallons a minute to 1,600 gallons a minute. Walsenburg Mayor Gary Vezzani said city officials located the leak March 16 flowing into the Cucharas River. Most residents’ running water wasn’t restored until two days later, with the last residents seeing repairs the morning of March 25, according to a report from World Journal.

The city said that a majority of residents had running water and good water pressure by March 18. As of March 26, a boil water advisory was still in effect for all Walsenburg residents. 

Many people, like Calza and others on the Walsenburg Community Forum Facebook group, said they were frustrated with the city’s communication during the crisis. Members of the group described the city’s messaging as inconsistent, leaving residents with more questions. 

Vezzani told Rocky Mountain PBS in a March 16 interview that city officials located the leak and running water would be restored in 30 minutes. Walsenburg residents said they did not have running water until March 18. 

Vezzani also told the World Journal newspaper that the city planned to submit chlorine tests with the hope that the boil water advisory would be lifted March 25 or 26.

As of March 26, the city has not said that the boil water advisory is lifted. 

Charles Montoya, 82, Calza’s next-door neighbor, said that he received a phone call from the city on the afternoon of March 14, more than 24 hours after the city’s water main break. Montoya said he was lucky to live next door to Calza, who researched more updates on the city’s website, but the neighbors were concerned for other seniors who, like Montoya, only received a phone call and might not know how to access information on the internet. 

The city of Walsenburg set up a water main break website and also sent out text alerts to residents who signed up to receive emergency text alerts. The city also posted updates on the Huerfano County Government Facebook page. Both the website and the Facebook page were last updated on the morning of March 24 with the following message: 

"Walsenburg Residents: This message is from the City of Walsenburg. Please continue to use water for non-potable purposes. Increased usage at this stage helps distribute chlorine disinfectants throughout the system. The boil water advisory remains in effect. Elevated chlorine levels may affect laundry washing. Please continue to follow all precautions.  Please do not drink the water."

The city sent the same message as a text alert Friday, March 20. There has not been a text alert since then. 

Vezzani said it is likely that another water main break will happen in the future. 

“We're going to have to address our aging infrastructure,” Vezzani said. “I think everybody [who] lives here knew that years ago. But they kept — councils and everybody — kept pushing, kicking the can down the road.”

“We're going to have more and more of these leaks, I think,” the mayor said. “So we're going to have to consider at least changing the major lines.”

Vezzani said the city is not currently applying to any grants to help fund the replacement of the city’s water system and will instead have to focus on finding money to make up for the more than 9 million gallons of water lost.