The Fordsville Fire Department will be open on Sunday to assist Ohio County residents who have been left without water after the rupture of a major water supply line.
The fire department, between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., will allow those in need to take a quick shower (the fire department has male and female shower facilities), and provide people with water to fill small tanks. A washer and dryer will also be available for anyone needing to wash clothes.
Firefighters will additionally hand out a “limited supply” of drinking water.
The fire department said that they will be open later than 2:00 p.m. “if we need to because of the crowd.”
The Fordsville Fire Department is at 160 West Main Street.
Main water line rupture
Approximately 2,200 Ohio County water customers have been left without water after a 12-inch pipeline that runs under I-165 (formerly the Natcher Parkway) ruptured Thursday morning.
“This pipeline is the supply line from our water treatment plant in Cromwell to the Olaton and Windy Hill pressure zones,” the Ohio County Water District (OCWD) said. “The failure of this line has made it impossible for us to pump water to the tanks that serve this area.”
Complicating matters is that the original casing pipe under the Natcher Parkway has failed in multiple places, making it impossible for crews to reuse the existing casing and pull a new pipe through.
“Our emergency contractor, Luttrell and Sons Construction, along with our OCWD crews, have been working tirelessly over the last two days to try and resolve the situation, but the condition of the pipe has prevented us from doing so,” the water district said.
The water district further said the contractor stated that it could take seven to 10 days to complete the repair.
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
