Richmond, VA - The City of Richmond Department of Public Utilities (DPU) continues to see increased pressures throughout the region’s water distribution system, as water storage tanks fill and return to full capacity after the 36” water main isolation and recovery. 

This was an isolated water main break; however DPU mitigated this interruption by balancing system demands throughout the nine pressures zones in the system and working closely with our regional partners. Drinking water remained safe during these activities and continues to be due to the decisive action taken by staff and their dedication to our customers.  

All customers should be experiencing water pressure that is within normal conditions with an expectation that the pressure will increase as the storage tanks within the system are filled further. Customers who are experiencing low water pressure currently, should report that by calling the DPU Call Center at 804-646-4646 so crews can investigate as a hydrant may need to be flushed in their area to improve service or it may be an unrelated issue that needs to be investigated further.

Crews were onsite throughout the day with contractors to assess the needed repairs for the 36” water main parallel to the canal. Mobilization of the repair crew will begin on Saturday, July 4 to perform preliminary access work and staging, with repair work scheduled to begin Monday, July 6. Updates on anticipated timeframe for full repair will be available after that time.

DPU continues to coordinate with its regional partners and may adjust system operations further to address any localized pressure concerns.  

In a prior press release, the City stated “As a result, customers in some portions of the City were impacted and experienced low or no pressure, resulting in no water for a period of time for some users.”; ,this was in reference to the pressure within the customer homes and not the pressure within the distribution system. Out of an abundance of caution, DPU has sampled through the entire distribution system and will provide those results when they are completed. These results will be provided to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) for their review.