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Onondaga County will distribute bottled water today to residents affected by a ruptured water line. The distribution will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Fayetteville-Manlius High School, located at 8201 E. Seneca Turnpike, Manlius. Up to 4,000 cases of bottled water will be available for residents in the six impacted towns: DeWitt, Manlius, Pompey, Sullivan, Lenox, and Lincoln.
The water line rupture occurred on December 20, when a 42-inch-diameter transmission line in Cicero failed despite multiple repair attempts by the Onondaga County Water Authority (OCWA) over the previous month. According to syracuse.com, Jeff Brown, executive director of OCWA, stated that while no one has run out of water, residents are urged to continue conserving water to manage demand.
The water distribution is a proactive measure to aid in conservation efforts, as explained by Justin Sayles, communications director for County Executive Ryan McMahon. Residents are asked to enter the distribution site via North Eagle Village Road and Pride Lane, and exit via East Seneca Turnpike, according to Fayetteville-Manlius School District.
Efforts to repair the ruptured line are ongoing, with work already underway to replace a 134-foot section of the pipe. Despite recent record-breaking snowfall, progress continues, with about a third of the retaining walls in place and drilling for water removal set to begin, as reported by ENC News. The OCWA has also tapped into other water systems to maintain supply, with Syracuse and Oneida each providing 800,000 gallons of water.