Residents Say The Water In Peabody Still Stinks

PEABODY, MA -- More than two weeks after Peabody residents were assured that a foul odor in their drinking water was harmless and would soon go away, those residents are still complaining of the stench. What's worse, some residents are now saying there is a rust-tinged discoloration of their drinking water as well. The problems seem to be consolidated in Ward 5 and may have to do with melting snow.

Officially, the city is still maintaining that the water is safe to drink. Residents who have called the water department to complain in recent days have been told that the problem is likely in the pipes in their home and that they should try running cold water through the tap closest to their water meter for five minutes.

The most recent round of complaints follow a round of earlier complaints at the end of February. At the time, the city attributed it to rapid snow melt following big winter storms. With spring fast approaching with lots of snow still on the ground and another storm on the way, the water odor problem could be prolonged.

Patch has reached out to Peabody officials for an update on this issue and will add their comments to this story as soon as we hear back from them.

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Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).