‘Like really bad-looking ice tea’: Eatonton residents raise concerns over brown running water

By Brittany Ford

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    EATONTON, Georgia (WANF) — People living in Eatonton are battling water quality issues.

Many living in the Cherokee Point Subdivision woke up Tuesday morning to brown running water.

“Turned on the cold water and it looked like really bad-looking iced tea. I took a picture of it,” said Zachary Kamen.

It’s the second time it has happened in two months.

Kamen said there was no warning or notification.

“It’s all frustrating because there is no alert, no information. I’ve said this back in August when the first event happened, ‘Why don’t you guys put a notification out like they do reverse 911?’ Tell us so at least we can do something,” he said.

The water was back to normal as of Thursday.

Piedmont Water, a privately owned contractor, manages the groundwater systems.

In a statement, the company said the water was not contaminated.

“As mentioned, we had a tree removed on Aug. 7 that was situated next to the well house. During this removal, a water line was broken which caused a change in flow within the water distribution lines. This change in flow dislodged mineral build-up within the lines, resulting in discoloration. We advise our customers to flush at an outside spicket if they experience any discoloration at their homes,” the statement reads. “On Sept. 4, we had a second break in the line within the same area where the tree was removed. This was repaired and the system was flushed again. It’s unfortunate that this happened, as this system does not typically have any issues.”

Residents said there was also little to no compensation for the cost it takes to flush the lines.

They have started a petition and plan to take concerns to Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division.

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