Carney Water Runs Dry After Line Break

A boil advisory is in effect in Carney after the town's water went out for more than 24 hours this week. The line break was fixed just before noon Thursday, but people who live there say this is becoming a problem that is too common for comfort.

Carney homeowner Karla Dimick has been closely monitoring the town's Facebook page since she first noticed her faucets were dry Wednesday morning. Besides herself and her husband, she has cattle, horses, goats, and puppies on her farm that all need water on a daily basis.

“I fortunately have some water in the basement that we keep for tornado or emergency things that I can bring up to at least flush the toilet,” said Dimick .

No one from the town would comment on camera, but the official Facebook page shows this is the ninth time within a year the water department shut off the system to repair a line break. This time, however, the leak was so major that it emptied the entire water tower, causing schools and businesses to close their doors for two days.

Administrators told News 9 that line breaks are a normal occurrence because the town does not have enough money to replace the system infrastructure, and the water department is only one person.

Dimick is concerned that the health risks are draining the community.

She said, “They’re saying don’t bathe your infants, don’t drink the water, and there’s a lot of people that have little kids. I don’t know what they’re supposed to do.”

Carney Public Schools announced the Red Cross is donating bottled water for students to drink when they return to class Friday.

Although the latest leak has been fixed, some citizens still fear the worst is yet to come unless the town replaces the old system.