Residents Advised to Boil Water

Residents in the rural San Mateo County community of Pescadero are being asked to continue to boil drinking water after a pump that broke earlier this week was replaced early Wednesday morning.

The county's director of public works said the state Department of Health had yet to deem the water potable, but that the boil notice in effect was expected to be lifted within one or two days.

More than 100 customers -- including homes, restaurants, businesses and schools -- lost their water supply when the pump stopped functioning late Monday night or early Tuesday morning, according to San Mateo County Public Works Director Jim Porter. After initial efforts to repair the pump failed, its replacement was ordered and shipped from Salinas, some 70 miles away, Porter said.

Public Works staff worked through the night to extend a well intake pipe and install the replacement pump, which was put in operation shortly after midnight Tuesday. Porter said this morning that the community's 140,000-gallon storage tank was being replenished at a rate that would take about 40 hours to reach capacity.

Public Works and state public health staff are working to disinfect and test the system's water, and Porter said that parts of the system may need to be flushed with chlorine to disinfect water in the distribution system. This could require staff to open some fire hydrants around Pescadero, he said.

--Bay City News