Dirty Water Alert in NW

Photo courtesy of
‘Photo a Day project: November 2006’
courtesy of ‘Jenny Lee Silver’

Update as of 12:40 p.m. — The boundaries have been reduced to the following :

  • West Boundary: Western Avenue, NW
  • North Boundary: River Road, NW
  • East Boundary: Connecticut Avenue, NW
  • South Boundary Nebraska Avenue, NW

Original post as of 11:11 a.m. — Northwest Washington needs to watch what they drink today. According to WTOP, residents in parts of NW are being advised not to drink water from the tap due to a higher-than-normal chlorine concentration.

Officials from the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) say that the sudden rise in chlorine levels occurred at its unmanned Fort Reno facility early Tuesday while it was offline for routine maintenance disinfection.

So prompt those taste buds and make use of your sense of smell if you live in NW, there’s no use in crying over dirty water if you’re on the look out for it.

See the page jump for a listing of boundaries issued by WASA for your safety.

  • West Boundary: MacArthur Boulevard, NW
  • North Boundary: Western Avenue and Eastern Avenue, NW
  • East Boundary: Amtrak railroad
  • South Boundary (east side of Rock Creek): Upshur Street, NW
  • South Boundary (west side of Rock Creek): Calvert Street to Observatory Circle to W Street.

There is also a map (hat tip to author Dave Levy for that) if you should require a visual vantage point.

For any additional inquires, call 202-612-3400.

Rachel moved to DC in the fall of 2005 to study Journalism and Music at American University. When she’s not keeping up with the latest Major League Baseball news, she works on making music as an accomplished singer-songwriter and was even a featured performer/speaker at TEDxDupont Circle in 2012. Rachel has also contributed to The Washington Examiner and MASN Sports’ Nationals Buzz as a guest blogger. See why she loves DC. E-Mail: rachel@welovedc.com.

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3 thoughts on “Dirty Water Alert in NW

  1. Many thanks to our customers in NW DC for their patience today.

    The District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority (DC WASA) has cancelled the advisory from this morning for some neighborhoods in Northwest to not use the water. The advisory has been lifted for all neighborhoods in the affected area. DC WASA conducted comprehensive testing of the water system during the past several hours and results have confirmed the water is now safe for drinking, bathing, cooking and cleaning.

    (For more information, including a map of the affected area, please visit http://www.dcwasa.com/news/listings/press_release445.cfm)

    The advisory was issued because of a higher-than-normal chlorine concentration. The spike happened early this morning at DC WASA’s unmanned Fort Reno facility when it was offline for routine maintenance disinfection. At 7:30 a.m., operators at the DC WASA Bryant Street Pump Station identified a drop in the reservoir at Fort Reno, which indicated the possibility of a chlorine spike. DC WASA immediately dispatched staff to confirm a higher-than-normal chlorine concentration in the water, which they determined had happened at approximately 5 a.m.

    As an added precaution, DC WASA recommends discarding any food or ice that was prepared with water between 5:00 am and 2:30 pm today. This includes infant formula. In addition, any faucets or taps that have not been used during the water advisory should be flushed for 10 minutes.

    Please share this information with anyone who drinks the water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.

    Customers with questions about their water should call the DC WASA Water Quality Division at 202-612-3440 (Mon-Fri, 8:00 am to 5:00 pm). Media and others who would like to learn more about this announcement should contact DC WASA Office of Public Affairs at 202-787-2200. DC WASA can be reached 24 hours a day at 202-612-3400.