Boil Water Advisory Lifted for Springfield

The boil water advisory has been lifted in Springfield. 

In an advisory sent out on Thursday, Sept. 1, New Jersey American Water announced that residents of Springfield, Irvington and Summit no longer have to boil their water for safety. Nonetheless, the water company urges customers to continue to use water as sparingly as possible. 

The advisory said that their most recent water tests for bacteriological samples show that the water meets all state and federal water quality standards. 

They warn that residents should continue to conserve water. The utility company said that returning to normal water consumption patterns would put undue stress on the system and could impact efforts to restore stability. New Jersey American Water customers should limit water consumption to essential needs only and discontinue outdoor water use. 

The boil advisory had been in effect since last Sunday when the company’s Canoe Brook Water Treatment Plant in Millburn was flooded and lost power as a result of Hurricane Irene. 

A boil water advisory remains in effect for New Jersey American Water customers in Maplewood, Millburn, Short Hills, and West Orange while New Jersey American Water works to restore stable water service to those municipalities. New Jersey American Water continues to maintain bottled water distribution sites in Maplewood, Millburn, and West Orange. 

More information, culled from a New Jersey American Water press release, follows. 

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Lifting the boil water advisory in these areas is contingent on these three factors: Recovery, Stability and Quality: 

Recovery 
New Jersey American Water has activated all of its interconnections with other water systems, and has established more than a dozen temporary interconnections and pumping stations in recent days to bring as much water supply online as possible. The company has also initiated a number of emergency/temporary modifications to the system, including hydrant-to-hydrant connections, to restore stability to the water system. 

The system is recovering gradually as a number of facilities are still without power. The company has established emergency generators at those facilities and continues around the clock efforts to restore the Canoe Brook Water Treatment to full power and return all customers to normal water service.  However, in some areas, the system is not yet stable. Pressures and flows may still fluctuate for customers in some locations. 

Stability 
At this time, if customers return to normal water consumption pattern, it will put undue stress on the water system and potentially impact emergency efforts to restore stability. New Jersey American Water requires customer in the impacted areas to limit water consumption to essential needs only. 

Quality 
New Jersey American Water continues to collect water quality samples at least twice daily throughout the system.  Even if those tests come back clean, the company must ensure that system pressures and flows are stable before we can lift the order for the remaining communities. 

New Jersey American Water appreciates its customers’ patience and cooperation while the company works to restore normal water service to all of its customers. 

Customers can continue to visit New Jersey American Water web site for Hurricane Irene Updates at www.newjerseyamwater.com.