The water coming out of the taps in Ansonia and Derby was tested for bacteria after a water main break Wednesday.
The water is safe to drink, Kate Powell, a spokesperson for the Regional Water Authority, said in an email Friday.
An 8‑inch main broke at about noon Wednesday near Planet Fitness and Panera Bread on Pershing Drive in Derby.
The 8‑inch main fed a large, 20-inch main. The sudden change in velocity stirred up sediment that normally sits within water pipes. Thousands of people in Ansonia, Derby, Woodbridge and Seymour had brown water come through their faucets.
Most residents had clean water as of Friday afternoon, though Regional Water crews were still flushing the system at various spots in Ansonia.
Residents on the Valley Indy Facebook page wondered whether the water was safe to consume — parents of young children were particularly concerned.
Powell stressed the water had been tested, as per protocol.
“When a water main is repaired, the water main is filled with water and then is tested for bacteria that might have been able to get into the main when it was exposed to the environment,” Powell said. “We do not open up the valves and restore water service until we get the all clear from our lab that the water is safe.”
She noted the brown color seen by the public wasn’t the result of “something foreign entering the water mains.”
“The minerals are always in the water, but tend to sink to the bottom of the main and stay there until they are stirred up by a large flow of water. One of the reasons we do water main cleaning every year to about 25 percent of our system is to help reduce the amount of minerals at the bottom of the pipes,” Powell said.
Ansonia residents took to social media Wednesday wondering why they had dirty water. The water company did not notify the public immediately, though anyone who called Regional Water received an automated message saying the company was aware of the problem.
Company officials kicked up their efforts Thursday, using Facebook and Twitter to answer questions from the public.
Powell said she erred by not sending a “Code Red” message from Regional Water Wednesday.
“For the CodeRED notification, in retrospect, we should have put out a message. I’m not sure why that wasn’t done on Wednesday evening, and honestly, I didn’t think about it Thursday morning. That was a mistake and a learning opportunity for me,” she said.
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