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Thomasville addresses 'dingy' colored water

People living in Thomasville found that their water had turned brown. The city blamed the issue on the recent hot weather.

THOMASVILLE, N.C. — Water discoloration continues in Thomasville nearly a month after city officials first warned of the issue.

The city said it's safe to drink and use but the 'dingy' water is unsightly to many City of Thomasville water customers.

Brown water comes out of every faucet in Katelyn Black's home.

"It started with a light yellow and now it's going on like almost full-on brown," Black said. "It's crazy. It's awful."

City Manager Michael Brandt told WFMY News 2 last month that the issue was caused by electrical outages that stopped the pumps in the water system. Since then, officials have found another cause.

"It's a byproduct of manganese and iron which is naturally occurring in our water from Lake Thom-A-Lex," Brandt said.

This is how an alert on the city's website describes the cause of the problem:

"The “dingy” water is caused due to a higher content of iron/manganese that is naturally occurring in reservoirs, including Lake Thom-A-Lex, which can occur during summer months due to higher algae blooms (sun penetrating deeper into the lake, providing more energy for algae growth). When this happens, we have to use more chemicals. The proper treatment is an ongoing balancing act to insure that the finished water meets the State standards for consumption. While the water has appeared dingy due to the higher content of manganese and iron molecules in the water, the chlorine content is at the proper levels, so there is not a concern of contaminated water."

The statement goes on to say that the water at the plant is back to normal. Brandt said it can take time before water throughout the system looks normal because the color has to work its way out of the 100 miles of pipes in the system.

He said the best thing to do is to report water discoloration to the city. Crews will flush pipes and hydrants. In some cases, the discoloration may come back afterward.

"We will keep working on it as long as we can to get this system.  It's something that's never happened to this extent before in our water system," Brandt said. "We are as frustrated as anyone else."

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