City officials blame freezing temps for discolored water

Some Cairo residents have experienced rusty or discolored water over the last two weeks and city officials are not exactly sure what is causing it.
City of Cairo Public Works Director Darin Todd told The Messenger this week that the first complaints were received by the City around New Year’s Day when temperatures dipped into the 20s.
Todd said, after consulting with engineer Stacy Watkins the city’s engineers suspect that some of the shallower water lines and those that cross local creeks have contracted and expanded enough to break loose scale and sediment on the interior of the pipes.
The city’s public works director says the majority of the complaints were from the older sections of the city and in northwest Cairo. Todd says those areas are served by older iron pipes.
“We have flushed hydrants in the areas where we have received the most calls and feel like it has cleared up. We haven’t had any complaints in the last four or five days,” Todd said.
Should city residents experience discolored water in sinks, washing machines or toilet bowls, they should report it by calling Dana Barfield with public works at 229-377-6028, ext. 137.