TRUMANN, Ark. — Pumps at the main well broke down in Trumann, Arkansas, causing some residents to depend on bottled water.
After the city’s main well shut down because of a pump failure, they switched to a newer well that had not yet been used.
Reports show that the switch caused a fine clay deposit to appear in the water system causing cloudiness, but Trumann Public Works Director James Pagan claims the water is not dangerous.
“I’m a 100% water drinker. I bring mine right out of the tap at my house,” said Director James Pagan of Trumann Public Works. “I always have, it’s not changed. If I thought there was something wrong with it I wouldn’t be drinking it.”
This water issue in Trumann is raising a lot of concern from people who live here who say the problem has been going on now for about three weeks and they want some answers.
“Yeah, ’cause I’m seeing particles floating, some larger than others, when I hold it up here in this sunlight,” Diane Schuh resident of Trumann.
Schuh says, Just three days ago, her pool was clear. Now, when she adds water to her pool it looks murky, making it unfit to swim.
Trumann City Hall says the water is still safe to drink.
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Pagan says the water is tested daily for iron and other contaminants, and some clay will continue to show up until enough water is pumped to clear the water.
“I hate it, that it looks like it does. At this point and time, it’s either that water or no water,” said Pagan. “We don’t have another choice. That well is what we’ve got to deal with.”
Repairs are expected to be completed on the main well in a week. The Arkansas Department of Health was in Trumann earlier this week to pull a sample from the newer well to test the water.
The cost to repair the well is expected to be around $30,000.
