The Decatur Minute

UPDATE from DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management, 2:47 p.m.:

At this time we have achieved the needed isolation of the large line and are making the final repair on it. The main system has been pressured back up to meet the needs of our public and should not pose an issue during the repair. We should be back to normal within 48 hours once the repair is completed, we have made sure the water quality is acceptable in that line and place the line back in service.

Thank you for your patience on this.

Many thanks to our field crews and plant staff for the long hours and diligence in helping to minimize the issue and sticking with it in the weather.

UPDATE from DeKalb County, 1:01 PM: 36-inch line issue on Park Hill Drive near Glenwood

Event Summary:

On January 13 early in the morning we had an issue develop on Park Lane with our 36 inch transmission line. Our crews began isolating the line for repairs and stabilized the site in preparation for work to commence when the line drained. The area was isolated without incident and the work process was ongoing. No pressure our outages were reported after isolation.

At some point in the late evening January 14, an issue developed with a valve that caused the leak area to pressurize and subsequently start flowing again. This leak started affecting the tank volumes in the area and also the system pressure. Our crews again went into the system and checked the valves to try and determine where the issue was. During this time we also isolated some storage tanks in the system and monitored the plant pressure to assure we had water.

Our dispatch office sent out the notices of the water issues at 11:07 AM Tuesday and again on Wednesday at 12:44 PM.

About 9:30 we found the valve issue and affected a repair on the valve which seems to have brought the issue under control. Pressure is building back in the system now and our crews are preparing to make the repair on the line which should be completed within 24 hours. At that point we will start bringing all of the system back up to normal.

The line in question is a 48-36-24 inch main transmission line originating in Scottdale/Clarkston and going south of I-20. The pipe has been identified as having manufacturing defects and was part of a national legal action. DeKalb County identified this pipe as having issues that fit the criteria of the identified defect and subsequently put the replacement in the Capital Improvement Program (Item 26) to secure a design and bid for the replacement of the line. Due to the size of the line, a majority of it being in main roadways and its length the process takes several years to complete.

UPDATE FROM DEKALB COUNTY 11:30AM: DeKalb County crews are on the scene of a water main break on Parkhill Drive in Decatur which is causing low water pressure in many areas throughout DeKalb County including Atlanta, Avondale, Clarkston, Decatur, & Scottdale.  This is a 36” pre-stressed concrete pipe which is over 40 years old.  This is a project that is scheduled under the County’s $1.35 billion CIP plans.  We are expecting repairs to take up to two days to complete.  During this time customer may experience drops in water pressure.  There are no boil water advisories at this time.  We will be providing updated to the news media, the county website and Twitter/social media as the work progresses.

UPDATE 10:54 a.m.: At this time the County estimates it will take until at least 1pm to get the system isolated and stabilized to permit an improvement in pressure.

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There has been a break in a 36 inch water main at South Columbia and Parkhill Drive. While the break is outside of the city, parts of the City of Decatur and Avondale Estates may be experiencing low water pressure.

We do not have an estimated timeline for repair, but will continue to post updates as they are available.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Casie Yoder, casie.yoder@decaturga.com, 404-371-8386.