City Of Coweta Works To Fix Water Quality Issues

The City of Coweta is working to fix water quality issues after state regulators determined its chlorine levels were inadequate.

The city began flushing out its system Monday to begin fixing the issue.

The city says the water at the treatment plant is already much better than it was, but it needs to make it from there all the way to the end of the line.

Several fire hydrants across the city look just like this one, letting out a steady stream of water. City manager Julie Casteen says this is happening in different parts around Coweta.

“The intent is to have the whole system from four outer quadrants of the city to flush the entire system to get everything stabilized,” said Casteen.

She says the chlorine levels at the end of the line drop below adequate levels over time because of how the lines are designed.

“The lines kind of stop, and they’re not connected to anything else, so the water kind of pools and stagnates in different areas. Over time, the chlorine level will dissipate, and so this helps flush it through and bring the level up,” said Casteen.

She says the water is safe to drink but says chemical buildup doesn't help the appearance of the water.

“It’s very upsetting to look at brown water when you open your tap up, but we’re doing everything we can to rectify the situation as quickly as possible.”

Casteen says this flushing process could take as long as two weeks.

“As long as we see everything’s improving, we’ll just continue until we get to the point where we feel comfortable stopping. If we need to go for two weeks, we will, but we think it’s probably going to be cleared up in a week or so,” she said.

The city is telling people in town to check their water periodically, and if it doesn't get better in a four-hour span, they should email the city at Publicworks@cityofcoweta.ok.gov