After over a week of boil water advisories, roughly 77,000 residents of Paterson and a neighboring town now have access to clean water. According to the Passaic Valley Water Commission, the city successfully repaired a 30-inch water main break Sunday night, enabling portions of Paterson and Prospect Park to return to normal service.
However, thousands of residents in both Haledon and North Haledon are still waiting for the all clear from the Manchester Utilities Authority, which operates their systems. Manchester Utilities Authority estimated that service will be restored Monday evening, but is putting restrictions in place to conserve water for now. Those restrictions include limiting outdoor water use, shortening showers, and running washers and dishwashers only when they are full.
Meanwhile, crews are turning their focus on connecting a 24-inch pipeline at the Great Falls, with the goal of having it placed into service Monday night. Once that’s completed, the system will return to normal operating conditions and the rest of the boil water advisories will slowly be lifted, officials said.
The water main break occurred Aug. 8 near the historic Hinchliffe Stadium and impacted service for about 200,000 residents overall. Paterson Mayor Andrea Sayegh said recent earthquakes in New Jersey may be to blame but authorities haven’t confirmed a direct cause.
