Montgomery County Public Utilities announced on April 10 a precautionary boil water advisory for customers in the area of NC Highway 73 West, Gaddy Farm Road, Nelson Store Road, Haithcock Road and Haywood Road due to outages caused by a water line failure along NC Highway 73 West.
The advisory was issued because outages and periods of low pressure can increase the risk of back-siphoning and the introduction of bacteria into the water system. The North Carolina Division of Water Resources recommends that when service is restored, residents should boil all water used for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, making ice, and food preparation for at least one minute or use bottled water. “Vigorous boiling for 1 minute should kill any disease-causing organisms that may be present,” Montgomery County Public Utilities said.
Officials said this measure is precautionary and will remain in effect until tests confirm that the water supply is safe. Discoloration and air in the system are common after such interruptions but do not pose health risks. Residents are advised to flush their systems by running a faucet to clear lines.
This announcement comes as education data shows challenges in Montgomery County schools. Of 195 senior students taking the reading portion of the ACT in Montgomery County school districts during the 2022-23 school year, only about 16 percent were considered ready for college according to state education data. In addition, just under ten percent of junior students who took the science portion were considered college-ready according to state reports.
Other recent results show that among juniors taking reading and English portions of the ACT, approximately one quarter met college readiness benchmarks as reported by state officials. Math scores showed about twelve percent readiness among juniors according to available data, while nineteen percent of seniors reached college-ready status on English assessments according to state records.
Montgomery County Public Utilities said it will continue monitoring conditions and notify customers when it is safe to stop boiling their water.
