Water services for the City of Beaumont, Texas, begin to return after three days of total system failure. Exxon Mobil and two other companies provided temporary water pumps to apply pressure to some residents of the city of 118,000 people.
Officials said water pressure will range from a drip in some areas to flowing in others, the Beaumont Enterprise reported Saturday morning.
“It’s OK to flush and bathe with, but we’re asking people to refrain from trying to fill up big containers,” Mayor Becky Ames told reporters. “It helps build pressure.”
Residents are urged to continue boiling water for two minutes before drinking, cooking, washing hands, and brushing teeth. This advisory is likely to remain in place for an extended period of time as the city’s water distribution system will need to be flushed, disinfected and tested for purity
The city’s entire water system shut down on August 31 after its two main pumps failed, Breitbart Texas reported. Following the system shut down, Baptist Hospitals of Southeast Texas ordered a transfer of its patients to other hospitals.
Exxon Mobil worked with two engineering companies, Echo and Tiger Industrial, to temporarily install pumps and get water flowing to the city’s residents.
Other companies, like HEB grocery stores, rushed to bring bottled water and ice to the city. The Texas grocery retailer shipped in several truck loads of water bottles and ice, the Weather Channel reported.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott ordered 600 pallets of water and 400 pallets of meals to be delivered to the East Texas community that is located near the Texas-Louisiana border. Officials set up distribution centers across the city.
Tropical Storm Harvey moved into the Beaumont area nearly a week after it first made landfall in Rockport, Texas, near Corpus Christi. Major wind damage occurred in the Coastal Bend region of the state while the Houston Metropolitan area experience more than 50 inches of rain over a few days. The Houston area’s average annual rainfall is 49.77 inches, according to National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration data.
Follow complete coverage of Hurricane Harvey and Houston Floods on Breitbart Texas.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas. He is a founding member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX, Gab, and Facebook.