UPDATE: Water pressure at the airport has improved and all restrooms have been reopened, an official with Memphis Airport said around 2 p.m., on Wednesday
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — FedEx and Memphis International Airport reported water issues on Wednesday, hours after Memphis Light, Gas and Water started encouraging residents to conserve as as much water as they can as winter storms impact the area.
According to MLGW, the freezing temperatures that the Mid-South has been experiencing over the last few days has lowered pressure across the water distribution system. They’re seeing reduced reservoir levels at their pumping stations.
To make matters worse, they have had to deal with several broken water mains.
That has led to reported problems across the city, including at the Memphis airport where they had to close restaurants and several restrooms. WREG’s Stacy Jacobson reported it was a double whammy for those establishments who had already been forced to close until recently due to the pandemic.
At the Memphis Hub, FedEx also experienced problems overnight. A spokesperson said there have been intermittent water outages because of frozen pipes. The company said it has a contingency plan in place to maintain the safety and well-being of its employees.
To help, MLGW asked everyone to reduce their water usage starting Wednesday and into Friday or they could be dealing with a water shortage. They offered the following tips on how to do that:
- Wash dishes by hand
- Don’t let the water run while getting ready
- Keep showers short
- Don’t wash your clothes for the next couple of days
- Drip faucets rather than run a small, steady stream
MLGW said its community offices will be closed on Wednesday. The Customer Care Center will be only accepting emergency calls and the web chat is unavailable.
If you need to report an electric outage, call (901) 544-6500. For water and gas outages, call (901) 528-4465.
