The Decatur Minute

City Schools of Decatur students are headed back to school next Monday, August 3.  We will have more traffic, including vehicles, buses and big & little pedestrians and cyclists on main roads and neighborhood streets.  Please plan on allowing more time for your commute and PLEASE slow down and pay extra attention as excited students head back to class.  We will have additional officers on duty in and around the school zones to remind everyone school is back in session.

Reduced speeds for school zones are indicated by either flashing lights and/or signage with the times for the school zone posted.  Flashing lights are not required or posted for every school zone. You must also obey the times indicated by signage posted for school zones.

Also, please remember that you must stop when the school bus is stopped and visual signals on the school bus are activated.  Visual signals include red and amber flashing lights and stop sign.  Amber flashing lights indicate the bus is slowing to stop.  Red flashing lights and the stop sign indicate the doors are opening.  You must stop for both. Do not proceed until the bus resumes motion or visual signals are no longer activated.

Atlanta Public Schools start back on Wednesday, August 5 and DeKalb County students return to school on Monday, August 10.

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To our City of Decatur community:

We want to thank you for your patience and perseverance during the water issues of the past four days. As of Monday night we are no longer under a boil water advisory. While the city provides many essential services, including police and fire, DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management manages the water pipes and sewer system for everyone in the county, including the City of Decatur.

Though we could not fix the source of the problem, the city did try to minimize the impact on city residents and businesses. This included:

• Keeping the public updated with the limited information that we could get via TheDecaturMinute.com blog, the Decaturga.com website, Smart911 call and text alerts, @DowntownDecatur Twitter feed and the city’s Facebook page.
• Ending Saturday’s Slide the City event early.
• Establishing two cooling stations on Saturday at the Decatur Recreation Center and Ebster Gym.
• Bringing in a water filtration tanker to provide water to seniors and special needs residents who could not easily boil water. Firefighters distributed more than 500 gallons of drinkable water.
• Having the Fire Department refill the water in the air conditioning system at Clairmont Oaks so residents of this senior housing facility remained cool.
• Coordinating emergency services with DeKalb County Fire Services so that back-up equipment and water tankers were available.

Our community came together and supported one another by checking on neighbors and sharing water, letting those who did not have running water shower in your homes, supporting local businesses that remained open in compliance with the boil advisory and most important, remaining calm during a trying situation.

We hope a situation like this never happens again. However, emergencies can occur at any time. Here are steps you can take now to be better prepared in case of a future emergency:

• Sign up for Smart911 alerts. The city uses the Smart911 system for phone and text alerts. It is very easy to create a Smart911 profile at Smart911.com. If you already have a Smart911 profile please log in now and make sure you have checked the box to receive emergency alerts. If you need help setting up a Smart911 profile or would like city staff to meet with your neighborhood group or homeowners association, please contact the Decatur Fire Department at 404-373-5092 for assistance.
• Also sign-up for CodeRed alerts. While the City of Decatur uses Smart911 for alerts, DeKalb County uses the CodeRed system. Since you are a resident of both the city and the county, it is a good idea to sign up with both systems so you can be sure to never miss an alert.
• Keep extra bottled water and non-perishable food stored at your home at all times. There should be enough for several days for every member of your household, including pets. More information on how to build an emergency kit is available at Ready.gov.

The Decatur City Commission
Jim Baskett, Mayor
Kecia Cunningham, Mayor pro temporare
Fred Boykin, Commissioner
Scott Drake, Commissioner
Patti Garrett, Commissioner

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DeKalb County has lifted the boil advisory. It is now safe to use the water that comes out of the tap.

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Date: August 1, 2015

Location: The Square Pub

Address: 115 Sycamore St Decatur GA 30030

Time: Noon – until the crabs run out

Event description: 3rd Annual CrabFest with Heavy Seas Brewery

Square Pub invites you to join Heavy Seas for a crab feast extravaganza! The menu will focus primarily on whole, steamed crab. There will also be other crab dishes such as crab dip, crab cakes, crab cake benedict, crab stuffed twice baked potatoes, crab legs, etc. The event will include a mini tap takeover featuring Heavy Seas beers.

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DeKalb County Watershed Management has indicated they have fixed the water pipe issue at Henderson Mill Rd. but the City of Decatur continues to have issues with no water or extremely low water pressure. Avondale Estates and other surrounding areas continue to have the same problem.

We are in communication with DeKalb County to try and resolve this issue as soon as possible. More information will be shared as it becomes available.

Here are the latest Tweets from @ItsinDeKalb:

ItsInDeKalb10:53am via Twitter for iPhoneRT @DWhisenhunt: DeKalb County says it is investigating water pressure issues, adds ‘Continuous checking slows process’decaturish.com/2015/07/dekalb…

ItsInDeKalb10:51am via Twitter for iPhoneRT @wsbtv: Boil water advisory STILL in effect for Dekalb County. Regular water service to resume today. 2wsb.tv/1LITck3http://t.copic.twitter.com/dsV24ozWSd

ItsInDeKalb10:10am via Twitter for iPhoneIt takes several hours for pressure to normalize. Please turn off all unnecessary water sources, as continuous checking slows the process.

ItsInDeKalb9:06am via Twitter for AndroidThe site of the break. It was a river yesterday. Fixed here. Still many reports of outages, crews checking valves pic.twitter.com/rlemuxkXEJ

ItsInDeKalb8:43am via Twitter for iPhoneWe have heard from a number of you re: lack of pressure, and we’re actively looking into it. Updates here.

And the press release that was sent out this morning:

Water Main Repairs Completed on 48” Line

 

DECATUR, Ga. – DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management crews completed repairs on a 48-inch main transmission line at Henderson Mill and Evans Road overnight, and began restoring pressure to the line at approximately 4 a.m.  DeKalb Water customers should see a return of normal service today. 

 

Beginning at 10 p.m. Saturday night, crews reduced water pressure to ensure the safety of workers installing a solid sleeve on the water line which had been breached since Thursday afternoon.  The delay was exacerbated by the presence of several other utilities at the same location, including electricity, natural gas, telephone, roads, and other water lines.  Crews will return later this week to address the cavity near the road that was caused by the breach and repairs.

 

Although water pressure in the water system is returning to normal conditions, a boil water advisory remains in effect for all DeKalb County water customers until further notice.  In an abundance of caution for our citizens and to protect the public from any potential health hazards, citizens are advised to boil all water prior to use for drinking, cooking or preparing baby food.  The water should be boiled for at least one minute after reaching a rolling boil.  Residents served by the DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management should continue to boil water until notified by DeKalb County after testing, the microbiological quality of the water is safe for human use.   When the test results are available, DeKalb County, in conjunction with the EPD, will provide an update to the boil water status.

 

A CodeRED announcement of the boil water advisory was issued to subscribers beginning Saturday afternoon.

 

DeKalb County is home to more than 700,000 residents.  Follow news from DeKalb County at @ItsInDeKalb on Twitter and sign up for additional updates atwww.onedekalb.com or send a text message with the word ONEDEKALB to 22828 (message and data rates may apply).  Additional information can also be found at www.dekalbcountyga.gov

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Decatur Fine Art, 627 E. College Ave. E at East Decatur Station, is having its opening reception Saturday, Aug. 8. The contemporary gallery of local artists will feature painting, photography, pottery, jewelry, mosaic glass and more. Information on artists and updates on the gallery’s progress can be found on Facebook. The gallery’s website is decaturfineartgallery.com.

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If you have a lack of water or A/C (or perhaps both) and need a cool place with working restrooms, please go to the Decatur Recreation Center, 231 Sycamore St. or Ebster Gym in the Beacon Municipal Center (at the corner of Trinity & Electric Ave – entrance is on Electric Ave.). Both locations have confirmed that they currently have water and air conditioning.

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The latest from DeKalb County is that crews are working to bring water pressure back up right now. Once the system is back to full pressure it should remain that way until midnight when pressure will be reduced again so repairs can be made overnight.

DeKalb County is tweeting updates via @ItsInDeKalb.

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We are working to try and secure more information from DeKalb County and will share updates as they become available.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 24, 2015

Work Continues on Water Main Break

Another drop in pressure may occur overnight

DECATUR, Ga. – DeKalb County continues work on a 48-inch main transmission line at Henderson Mill and Evans Road, after the hydrant was damaged by a mowing crew working in the area.

Pressure was reduced overnight to get control of the flow of water.  Pressure was restored to the system at 3:30 a.m., however the leak is still present.

DeKalb Watershed crews are engaging a contractor to assist us overnight.  Similar to last night, DeKalb water customers may have a short interruption in water pressure while a valve in the line is closed to stop the current breach.   At that time, crews will insert a new valve in the fire line to stop the leak.

The 48-inch transmission main is approximately 20 feet underground in an area with gas, power and other utilities present.  These obstacles require substantial coordination and care.

No boil water advisory is indicated at this time. The system will continue to have additional testing to assure the water supply remains safe.

Known for its business and education hub, growing international community and natural wonders, DeKalb County Government is administered by Interim Chief Executive Officer Lee May and legislative policy is set by a seven-member Board of Commissioners. DeKalb County is home to more than 700,000 residents.

Stay informed with news from DeKalb County by signing up at www.onedekalb.com or send a text message with the word ONEDEKALB to 22828 (message and data rates may apply).

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