Coweta Residents Concerned About Water Quality, City Provides Updates

The City of Coweta gave an update on its water Monday after it was off-color and not tasting right last month. The city held a question-answer session for citizens.

People who live in Coweta asked the city's water consultants questions about their water. But only one person asked a question.

Barbara Scruggs says while she is hopeful, she doesn't think water improvements in Coweta are realistic even after hearing from the city.

Out of the more than 3,000 people who use water from the City of Coweta, Scruggs was the only person who asked a question at a public meeting Monday night.

"I'm just wondering how long it will take to get these issues resolved," Scruggs said.

She's referring to water that's tasted unusual, smelled unusual, and looked unusual. Scruggs says it's been that way since she moved from Broken Arrow four years ago.

"Every year we get a report that says there are issues with the water," she said.

Charles Schneider with Omni Water Consultants is working with the City of Coweta to fix its water issues. They led the update and answered Scruggs' questions.

"That is a snapshot from the water of the previous year, so when you look at that it's important to know that that water has come and gone. It is a year before," Schneider said.

Scruggs said off-camera that the consultant's response made her think, "It is what it is."

Schneider says the first step to fixing the issue is finding areas that need water lines and pipes flushed.

"We're going to find areas that are of higher usage than other areas, lots of dead ends that we may not have even known about," Schneider said.

He says testing is being done every day, and he's gotten feedback every day.

"It may be ugly, but it's safe," Schneider said.

Scruggs says it's a small town and doesn't think Coweta has the budget to get a new water system.

Schneider says the timeline for getting the water fixed is impossible to know.

As for Barbara Scruggs, she says she's already installed a water filter at home but says she should not need one in the first place.