Water Main Spring Flushing
The Gloucester Department of Public Works - Water Division will be conducting the routine spring unidirectional drinking water main flushing program to improve water quality and system efficiency starting May 8th with the Downtown Area. More urbanized areas will be flushed first at night and more sparsely populated areas will then be flushed during the day. The program concentrates on five sections of the City: Downtown, East Gloucester, Lanesville, Magnolia, and West Gloucester. It will take approximately 2 weeks or less to flush each area.. Temporary discoloration of tap water may occur as iron particles are cleaned from the pipes. Although this discolored water is not harmful to your health, you should avoid use of chlorine bleach when washing clothes to avoid staining of laundry. Running the cold water tap for a few minutes is usually sufficient to restore the flow of clean water to your home. If water quality problems persist, residents should call the DPW at 978-281-9785. The Water Division will return to areas, if needed, where discoloration of the water persist. Now in place since 2009, the unidirectional flushing program has been very successful in water main cleaning and significantly reducing discoloration.
Flushing Schedule (tentative)
5/08/11: Started downtown - Cleveland St, Sargent St, Warren St, Centennial,
Beacon, Commonwealth, Grove, Gloucester, Mystic, etc. Finished by
May 19, 2011.
5/23/11: Flush heading up Washington St, towards Annisquam and Lanesville.
Flush for two weeks, finished by June 6, 2011.
6/06/11: East Gloucester - Eastern Ave, Salt Island Road, Eastern Pt Blvd. Flush
for at least two weeks, may be longer. Finished by June 20, 2011.
6/20/11: Magnolia and West Gloucester. Flush for approximately three weeks.
Finished by July 6, 2011.
*Note: Flushing time shown is approximate for each section. Please keep in mind that the flushing schedule may fluctuate by a few days longer or shorter per each section thus revising the actual flushing dates.
Thank you in advance for your patience and cooperation.
Michael B. Hale
Director of Public Works