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Wallsburg reports temporary chlorination, SCADA alarms and pump issues during water system cutover
Summary
Town staff described a pump/valve mapping error that caused chlorinated, stagnant water to be pushed into distribution lines; staff began nightly chlorine dosing, and scheduled a SCADA technician to fix false alarms. Council discussed battery backup and manual overrides.
Wallsburg staff told the council on Sept. 5 that a mapping error during coupling of a new tank and existing lines caused chlorinated, stagnant water to be drawn back into the distribution system; crews flushed hydrants and began night‑time chlorine dosing to clear the lines.
The town’s project team discovered an apparent missing valve while attempting to operate pumps into the new tank, which limited the well’s ability to push water uphill. That mismatch allowed chlorinated water from a previously stagnant section to move into active lines; staff responded by opening hydrants and dosing the upper and lower tanks with chlorine to restore disinfectant residuals.
Town staff said crews have been adding a measured chlorine dose; the working dosing described at the meeting was roughly one gallon per 25,000 gallons of system volume. Town staff cautioned that residents may notice a chlorine taste or odor while the system is being treated but said the water remains safe to drink.
Separately, staff reported repeated false alarms from the SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) monitoring system and a PRV (pressure‑reducing valve) that has intermittently shown flow when none is present, forcing manual overrides. The council was told a technician (Chris Scott) has been contacted and is expected to come on Monday to repair the SCADA alarms; the council was informed to expect a service bill for that work.
Councilmembers also raised concerns about the backup battery at the treatment site; during a recent power outage the battery backup did not function as expected and may need replacement. Staff said the top slab for the new tank was recently poured and that contractors continue cutover work on the upper section while taking steps to avoid stagnation in lines serving a small number of remaining meters.
No formal council action was taken; staff tasked the system operator and contracted SCADA technician to complete repairs and to continue chlorination and flushing until laboratory results show normal disinfectant levels.
The council asked staff to notify residents about the taste/odor and to update the town’s emergency contact list as part of ongoing follow up.
