After more snow and freezing temperatures expected to continue for the next few days, residents of Pottawatomie County – and the state – are being urged to take care of their aqueducts.
Pottawatomie County Emergency Manager Chad Larman said the county received about three to four inches more snow overnight and through Wednesday morning.
Due to the weather, Larman said several towns in the county were having problems with their water pipes and pipes.
Wednesday morning the emergency manager said Tecumseh had some water pressure issues overnight, but the problem had stabilized.
“They believe this is because their water treatment plant went down the night before due to a power outage,” Larman said.
Also, Larman said a well in Maud was frozen but the city was able to defrost it and its water system restarted with no problem.
Larman also said the Shawnee city has numerous waterline breaks and the crews are actively fixing these issues.
The emergency manager said everyone should do everything possible to prevent their pipes from freezing in their homes.
“To prevent pipes from freezing, please turn on the hot and cold water on your faucet so that a steady stream the size of a pencil lead comes out of your faucets. This includes showers,” Larman said.
In addition, Larman said if homeowners have faucets on an outside wall, they have to open the closet doors to let in heat.
“If your pipes freeze, please contact a plumber to have them thawed,” Larman said. “If you are using an alternate heat source to thaw your pipes yourself, please be careful how close the heater is to flammable materials.”
As the winter weather continues, Larman said the County Emergency Operations Center is continuing to work on these winter storm and supply issues.
Larman said the Pottawatomie County Commissioners held an emergency meeting on Tuesday declaring a state of emergency for Pottawatomie County.
“Governor Stitt has requested a disaster statement for public and individual aid from FEMA, so we are waiting to see if it is approved,” Larman said.
In addition to the work on pipes, Larman said on Wednesday that the roads around the district are covered in snow, so the snow removal work is still going on and may continue until Thursday.
No accidents or stranded motorists were reported to the emergency response center by Wednesday morning.
“I’d like to give special credit to all emergency managers in the county, including tribal emergency managers for working together as a team and for everything they do for their communities,” Larman said.
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