What is going on in Jackson, Mississippi? They are on day 4 of a water shortage. This is mainly due to the water treatment plant failing to do what is basic and necessary for their community. It’s being reported that the water treatment plant has basically put band aids on maintenance issues; for decades.
The problem — which comes on top of a boil-water notice in effect for more than a month — has upended life in the city of roughly 150,000 residents, where schools were shuttered this week, businesses are forced to adapt and people have had to wait in long lines for bottled water they can use to drink, cook or brush their teeth.
It does seem like they are making progress. They rented and installed a pump. The houses and businesses closest to the water treatment plant, for the most part, have normal water pressure. But houses and businesses farther from the water treatment plant are still experiencing low to no water pressure.
President Biden has issued emergency declaration for Jackson, Mississippi. The Governor of Mississippi says this should help them obtain important resources to help them through the crisis. But it’s still upending everyday life for a lot of their citizens.
Residents are seeing cloudy, discolored water coming out of their faucets and are being told it should be adequate for sanitation purposes. They can’t use the water to drink, cook or wash dishes, but they can shower and wash their hands in it, officials said.
“Please make sure in the shower that your mouth is not open,” Jim Craig, senior deputy and director of health protection at the Mississippi Department of Health, told residents Wednesday, adding pets should also not consume the water.
What about the people who can’t afford to keep buying bottled water? What about hospitals, and schools? What about local businesses? This is a major crisis that I’m sure the citizens of Jackson, Mississippi would like to see fixed. They would like their normal lives back.
Source CNN
