Water System Emergency: Please Minimize Water Use Until Further Notice!

Update 5:45 PM:  After having to rebuild part of the pump manifold that was damaged during this failure, the raw water pump station is now operating with generator power.  Water is being pumped to the sand filters at this time, and if all goes well, the system should begin to recover through the night.  The work to replace the failed transformer is anticipated to start tomorrow as soon as the electrical contractor receives the replacement. 

Thank you to everyone for minimizing water use during this system failure emergency.  With the help of the potable water deliveries, the net drop in the reservoir was to eight feet from nine feet this morning.

Please continue to minimize water use until the District provides notice that the system has been returned to normal operation (i.e. off generator power).

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Update 12:30 PM:  Generator has been connected, and we have power.  However, valves are still frozen even though propane heaters have been running since 11:00 PM last night.  Valve specialist was contacted early this morning and is now en route; should be on site within the hour to assess.  Hope is that the valves can be made to work sometime today in order to pump water to the sand filters with generator power. 

Replacement transformer will not be available until tomorrow morning.  Installation is planned after it is received.  Until then, the District will continue to run on the generator, and potable water will continue to be delivered to the clear well as needed.

Please continue to minimize water use until further notice.

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Phone Message January 14, 2024, 9:30 AM

This message is from the Kootenai County Water District No. 1 Board of Directors.

Late last night, District personnel responded to an alarm and discovered that we had a transformer fire in the lake raw water pump house, causing a power outage, which shut down the pumping of raw water to the sand filters.

Currently, the District has all trades on site to repair and restore power so that the pump house can be operational again to refill the sand filters.

Potable water is being delivered during the day until the pump house is operational, but at this time, an estimated time of Restoration (ETR) is unknown.

The Reservoir is currently at nine feet, and the entire District is operating off this reservoir water.  A full reservoir is 14 feet.

Please minimize water use to the bare minimum until further notice to avoid depressurizing the main lines.

Please check the KCWD#1 blog at www.kcwd1.blogspot.com for updates, and let your neighbors know about this water system emergency, as not all Patrons have subscribed to the emergency notification system or blog.

Thank you.

Reminder: Grouse Meadows/Long Shadowy Lane Planned Water Service Interruption, Tuesday, January 9, 2024, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

A temporary bypass pumping system will be brought online to operate during the construction and installation of new pumps and controls in the Grouse Meadows Booster pump house.  On Tuesday, January 9, 2024, water service for the 28 KCWD#1 Patrons served by this booster pump house in the Grouse Meadows, Long Shadowy Lane area will experience a water service interruption from 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM to allow contractors to switch water pumping in this area to the temporary pumping system.

Patrons affected by this service interruption should plan not to use water until service is restored.  Patrons are asked to monitor the blog to get updates as to when service is actually restored.

As not all Patrons have subscribed to the blog, please let your neighbors know about this planned water service interruption.  

As a reminder, patrons, who have had their water service interrupted, should open one inside tap slowly to vent any air that may have gotten into their plumbing, and then flush their lines until running water is clear during first use.

Grouse Meadows, Long Shadowy Ln. Planned Water Service Interruption: Tuesday, January 9, 2024

Construction has begun on the upgrade of the Grouse Meadows Booster Pump Station as part of the District Phase 1 Capital Improvement Project.  In order to do this work, a temporary bypass pumping system will need to be brought online to operate during the construction and installation of new pumps and controls in the Grouse Meadows Booster pump house.  On Tuesday, January 9, 2024, water service for the 28 KCWD#1 Patrons served by this booster pump house in the Grouse Meadows, Long Shadowy Lane area will experience a water service interruption from 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM to allow contractors to switch water pumping in this area to the temporary pumping system.

Patrons affected by this service interruption should plan not to use water until service is restored.  Patrons are asked to monitor the blog to receive updates as to when service is actually restored.

As not all Patrons have subscribed to the blog, please let your neighbors know about this planned water service interruption.  

As a reminder, patrons who have had their water service interrupted, should open one inside tap slowly to vent any air that may have gotten into their plumbing, and then flush their lines until running water is clear during first use.

Planned Water System Shutdown Today-Minimize Water Use

Update 4:15 PM:  Installation took longer than planned, and leaks in some of the new valves were identified around 3:15 PM when manifold was pressure tested.  Leaks were resolved and pumps turned back on just before 4:00 PM.  Reservoir was depleted to 9.4 feet (full is 13.5 feet) from District use during the shutdown, so thank all of you for minimizing your water use during this planned system down time.  Reservoir is now recovering.

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As posted previously, the pumps at the main pump house have been turned off, as of 9:00 AM, in order to allow for the installation of the new pump manifold as part of the Phase 1 Capital Project installation of a new pump that will bring our system into compliance with having redundant pumping capability to meet highest daily peak demand if one of the other pumps fails or is taken offline for maintenance.

The reservoir was full prior to the pumps being turned off, so the District water is being supplied by the reservoir only until the pumps are turned back on, estimated at 3:00 PM.

Please minimize water use until 3:00 PM today to avoid the reservoir level dropping to a critically low level before the pumps can be turned back on.  Thank you for your cooperation.

Please monitor the blog for updates on this planned shutdown, and inform your neighbors, as not all Patrons subscribe to the KCWD#1 blog.

Water Treatment Plant Planned Shutdown on Wednesday, December 20, 2023, 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

On Wednesday, December 20, 2023, the main pumps at the water treatment plant will be shut down from approximately 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM to allow for the installation of a new manifold in preparation for the installation of a new pump as part of the KCWD#1 Phase 1 Capital Project.  The reservoir will be filled to maximum before the pumps are turned off, and the District will be running on the stored reservoir water until the pumps are turned back on after installation is complete.

This shutdown timing is planned around a typically low use period of the day, but the District is asking that all Patrons restrict their water use from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM on Wednesday, December 20th, to minimize the depletion of the reservoir.

The work may be completed earlier than expected, and if so, the blog will be updated on Wednesday.  Please monitor the blog for status updates and additional information.

As not all Patrons are subscribed to the blog, please let your neighbors know about this planned shutdown.  Thank you.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

The regular District Board meeting is this Wednesday, December 20, 2023 at 6:00 P.M. located at the Eastside Highway District building at 6095 Mullan Trail Rd.  The agenda is available on the Board Meeting Agendas page in the page list on the right side of the blog Home page.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS SPECIAL MEETING

A Special 60 % Design Review Meeting of Phase 2 will be held Monday December 11, 2023 from 1:00 - 2:30 P.M. at the district pump house, located at 5866 E. Sunnyside Ave.