Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties

Precautionary water advisory issued in downtown Ironwood

IRONWOOD — The city of Ironwood experienced diminished water quality Wednesday because of firefighting operations on East Aurora Street and the Western Upper Peninsula Health Department issued tips to affected city customers.

High velocity water flows from fire hydrants necessary to extinguish the fire resulted in brown or cloudy water conditions due to sediments from cast iron water pipes.

Residents and businesses, including food establishments, were affected.

“Whenever tap water is less than clear in appearance, precautionary measures are recommended,” said WUPHD Environmental Health Director Tanya Rule.

“If the water is not clear, do not drink it and continue to flush until clear. If you have continued concerns about your drinking water, the Western U.P. Health Department recommends drinking bottled water until the advisory is lifted,” she said.

“If you are flushing your pipes, the city of Ironwood recommends taking a reading from your water meter before and after flushing to get a credit on your water bill from the water department,” she said.

Food establishment operators must follow instructions in the “Emergency Action Plans for Retail Food Establishments” guide to remain open. Bottled water must be used for drinking, making ice, coffee, pop or other beverages, and preparing food in a food service establishment until further notice.

A link to the document is posted on the Western U.P. Health Department’s website at http://www.wupdhd.org.

Health department food safety inspectors were monitoring the affected food establishments to ensure the safety of food sold in the immediate area.

“To restore public confidence and to ensure safe drinking water, city of Ironwood water department staff will take remedial actions such as flushing and collecting water samples from the system to determine when the water meets state drinking water standards. It’s estimated that the problem will not be resolved for several days,” Rule said.

“The precautionary water advisory remains in effect until results from the sampling verify the water is safe to drink,” she said. It could be three days, she said Wednesday afternoon.

She noted no boil advisory had been issued for the city and there was no evidence that the water was contaminated, although its dark brown colors makes it “aesthetically unpleasing” to the eye.

Questions or concerns regarding water quality may be directed to the city at 906- 932-5050 or the WUPHD at 906-482-7382.