Happy Friday Rural Water! Hurricane Michael has come and gone and left the Panhandle recovering in its wake. Thanks to the efforts of Florida Rural Water Association and many others, the situation has stabilized. Currently, FRWA is helping Mexico Beach, Port Saint Joe, and many other rural communities to recover. These systems suffered damage to drinking water and wastewater systems during the storm. As we all know, without electricity many systems cannot operate. 

FRWA deployed over 35 generators to help systems large and small provided water to their customers. As water was restored to areas, rotation schedules were established to run lift stations to pump wastewater and prevent spills. In some coastal areas, services took longer to recover as repair to mains were required.

Currently, the Panhandle is recovering and doing so quickly. Most systems in Bay County are back on line power and are repairing controls, storage tanks, clarifiers, and other pieces of equipment damaged in the storm. Coastal systems, like Mexico Beach, are still repairing mains for drinking water and sewer systems and are running on generators for the time being. These repairs will take time, but the community is understanding and willing to help.

FRWA could not have helped as much as we did without the support of all of our members. We were overwhelmed by the calls from members pledging help and supplies as needed. Thank you!