Water pressure returned to normal in Jackson, Mississippi on Monday, according to officials, after at least 180,000 residents were forced to contend with several days of no clean tap water for drinking and flush toilets.
People are directed to get bottled water by members of the church.
The city said Monday that all Jackson residents should have normal water pressure.
Tate declared a state of emergency and told residents not to drink the water after the city's long struggling water treatment system experienced issues following flooding around the Pearl River in Mississippi.
The boil-water notice remains in effect for residents until the city reports two rounds of clean water.
Repairs were made at the water treatment facility and automated systems were restored in order to improve water quality.
At least a billion dollars. It would take billions of dollars to fix the city's water distribution system, according to the mayor. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act signed into law by President Joe Biden last year will give Mississippi $429 million, but it will take a long time for those funds to reach Jackson.
More than 80 percent of Jackson's residents are black or African American, and they frequently face boil-water notices. Staffing shortages, old infrastructure and insufficient resources have plagued the system. The facility has been cited by the EPA as an example of a longstanding environmental injustice. The city relied on back-up pumps after the main pump at the main water treatment facility was damaged. After a winter storm caused the water system to fail, Jackson residents were left without clean running water for a month.
"The residents of Jackson are worthy of a dependable system, and we look forward to a coalition of willing who will join us in the fight to improve this system that's been failing for decades," Lumumba said at the press conference.
Jackson's water crisis was caused by white then black residents abandoning the town.
The governor and city officials say water pressure is back to normal.
Repairs to Jackson's water system could cost billions. Federal infrastructure funds can take a long time to fix. NBC is a news organization.
The governor declared an emergency in Jackson because of the lack of clean running water.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
