Montgomery County water outage: 75K Dayton residents impacted, with another 20K county connections affected

But right now, there are two separate maps.

Here is a link to Montgomery County's boil advisory map.

Here is a link to the city of Dayton's boil advisory map.

The situation is affecting roughly 75,000 Dayton residents, city spokeswoman Toni Bankston said. That amounts to about 30,000 service connections.

About 15,000 to 20,000 county water connections are affected, county spokeswoman Brianna Wooten said.

Areas that aren’t included in a boil advisory at the moment are Kettering, Centerville, Washington and Miami townships and Moraine.

In a noon press conference, officials said a comprehensive single map should be ready this afternoon.

EARLIER

UPDATE 9:50 AM

A Montgomery County map to the areas still under a boil advisory can be found here. 

Those still under the advisory should let their water run for at least three minutes and then boil the water at a rolling boil for at least a minute prior to consuming it.

Those with questions should call (937) 333-4905 if they are uncertain whether they are under the boil advisory.

Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein said the water main break in the Great Miami River was found at about 1:30 am Thursday.

“Water distribution crews have isolated both sides of the transmission pipe from the rest of the distribution system to allow the city’s crews to bring the impacted areas of the system fully back online,” Dickstein said.

No customers will be impacted within the area that has now been isolated, she said.

Montgomery County has provided a map of the impacted boil advisory area. A link to the map is here.

The transmission break area will be repaired when the river level has subsided and the area can be accessed, Dickstein said. The remainder of the system should be back online in about eight hours, the city manager added.

Some customers could see muddy or cloudy water, she warned. This should dissipate over five to seven days. Customers should avoid washing light clothes, she also advised.

The city’s water lab is testing water samples now. The city expects the first results in 24 to 48 hours.

The water plants are now pumping at full production, Dickstein also said.

UPDATE 9:15 AM

At least 15,000 to 20,000 Montgomery County water connections remain affected by the boil advisory, county officials said Thursday morning.

That number does not include the number of city customers still under the advisory as well, county officials said.

The water main break was along and under the Great Miami River, Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein said at a press conference.

She declined to give a precise location for the break, but it is within the city, and at least part of the impacted break area was under the water -- which was one reason why locating the break was challenging.

The city hopes to lift the boil advisory by end of day Friday.

The boil advisory is not county wide, Montgomery County Administrator Michael Colbert said. The county has released a map showing the remaining affected area. (A LINK to the map is here.)

At this point, there are no cost estimates for fixing this problem.

EARLIER THURSDAY:

A widespread water outage that has affected more than 400,000 people in the city of Dayton and across much of Montgomery County, and new information continued to be uncovered Thursday morning.

Dayton government officials held a press conference this morning, saying they have located the source of the largest water outage in the city’s history.

However, a boil advisory remains in effect for many Montgomery County residents as testing of the water proceeds for the next 24 to 48 hours, the city is advising.

Crews are working to repair the leak, said Michael Powell, the water department’s director.

Here’s what to know this morning:

1. Water pressure issue

Starting shortly before 5 p.m. Wednesday, the Dayton water system experienced a significant loss of water “in the millions of gallons” within its distribution system.

That leak has been found, city officials said Thursday morning. They did not give an exact location for the source of the problem.

2. Boil advisory remains in effect during testing

A boil advisory — which the city Wednesday called “a precautionary, not mandatory, boil advisory” — was instituted for water consumed. Residents are asked to boil water for drinking or teeth brushing at a rolling boil for at least 30 seconds.

The city of Huber Heights tweeted that it has its own water system and infrastructure and is not connected or affected by the problems with the Dayton and Montgomery County system.

Customers who are unsure if their water was impacted should call dispatch at (937) 333-4905 for assistance.

3. Areas not affected by the boil advisory:

Beyond Huber Heights, these cities have their own water systems and are not impacted by the precautionary boil water advisory: the cities of Oakwood, Vandalia, Englewood, Miamisburg, and West Carrollton.

4. Source of problem found

The city of Dayton water treatment plants are now pumping at full capacity and returning water to the system in impacted areas, officials said early Thursday.

However, the system will not be up to full capacity for up to eight hours, the city warned.

5. Residents asked to keep conserving 

In an effort to allow the system to fully stabilize, officials are asking residents to continue conserving water until they receive the notice to resume normal use, the release said.