WSSC asks Maryland customers to limit water use due to power outage at filtration plant

Water utility WSSC has issued an Essential Water Use Only request to its customers in Montgomery County and Prince George's County, Maryland. A power outage at the utility's Potomac filtration plant has led to concerns that the supply of processed water could run out before Pepco can restore power. However, WSSC says water is currently safe to use and drink at this time, and that no Boil Water Advisory has been issued yet. Customers are asked to limit shower time and toilet flushes, and to postpone outdoor uses and running of clothes washers and dishwashers until the emergency is over.

Ongoing water leak on Maple Avenue in Takoma Park to be repaired July 2 or 3

The City of Takoma Park reports that there is an ongoing water leak in the 7600 block of Maple Avenue. Water utility WSSC repaired a water main break there this past Tuesday. However, the WSSC crew found that there is an ongoing smaller leak in a valve at the same location. WSSC has scheduled a crew to return to the block on July 2 or 3 to repair the valve leak. This will require a temporary cutoff of water service to some nearby residents.

The reason the work is being put off until the first week of July is that the utility did not want customers to be without water during the heat wave that is now underway. WSSC also plans to perform the valve repair at night, to reduce the disruptive effect on customers in the community. 

Discolored water in Aspen Hill

The WSSC has issued a notice that customers in the Aspen Hill and Bel Pre areas of Silver Spring may notice discolored/brown water now and in the next couple of weeks. This is due to work being done in preparation for a large water main shutdown later this month, the utility says. 

WSSC says discolored water is safe to drink, but that they do not recommend doing laundry in the discolored water. If the discoloration persists beyond January 21, WSSC advises you call them at 301-206-4002, or email them at emergencycallcenter@wsscwater.com.

24-hour generator coming to Fenton-Silver Spring intersection next month

The WSSC will be replacing a sewer main at the intersection of Fenton Street and Silver Spring Avenue in downtown Silver Spring next month. As part of the project, their contractor will be operating a generator at the intersection 24 hours a day for the duration of the work.

The part of the project requiring the generator is scheduled to begin in mid-May, and will take several weeks to complete. A noise waiver for the generator has been requested from Montgomery County. The intersection is about half-a-block from the nearest occupied residences on Fenton Street.

Ennalls Avenue closure tonight, Wednesday night in Wheaton

Ennalls Avenue in Wheaton will be closed between 11:00 PM and 5:00 AM tonight, and Wednesday night. The closure is due to water line repairs by the WSSC. There's no mention in the closure notice about whether the closure applies to specific blocks, or to the entire length of Ennalls.

Water main break in Aspen Hill affects traffic, school schedule

The traffic mess earlier this morning
in Aspen Hill after water main break

A water main break at Connecticut and Georgia Avenues Sunday continues to affect traffic and school schedules this morning in Aspen Hill. Two southbound lanes of Georgia at Connecticut remained closed for this morning's rush hour, as WSSC crews attempted to repair the break. The WSSC says that the amount of other utilities buried close to their own water pipers has slowed down the repair effort.

The break in a 10" water main

Harmony Hills Elementary School, which served as an emergency water station last night, will open two hours late this morning due to the water main break.

Photos courtesy WSSC

Nighttime noise ahead in Wheaton

Nighttime noise is ahead in the Wheaton Triangle. The WSSC plans to replace a water main along Ennalls Avenue between Grandview Avenue and Veirs Mill Road. Work will be performed at night to avoid impacts on pedestrians, traffic and local businesses.

The project is scheduled to commence in October, and the work will be done between the hours of 9:00 PM and 7:00 AM. WSSC's contractor will have to receive a noise waiver from Montgomery County to work at night.

Water main replacement ahead on Philadelphia Ave. in Takoma Park

The WSSC is hosting a public meeting regarding the Philadelphia Avenue water main replacement project on Tuesday, February 6, 2018 at 6:30 PM at the Takoma Park Community Center, located at 7500 Maple Avenue. WR Sewage and Excavation was awarded the contract by the utility, for a major project the WSSC says will cost $2.3 million.

841' of 8" water mains, 37' of 10" water mains, 1702" of 12" water mains, 4235' of 16" water mains, and 2155' of water-to-house connections will be replaced as part of this project. The water-to-house connections have been subcontracted to MRB Enterprise, Inc., and B& J Construction Co. will haul away dirt by truck, according to the WSSC contract.

Water main break at Randolph Road and Charles Road

There is a water main break at the intersection of Randolph Road and Charles Road, between Rock Creek Park and Veirs Mill Road. WSSC is now on-scene, and are shutting down the left and center lanes of westbound Randolph Road. The utility says the break is in a 6" main that was installed in 1948.

Leggett's WSSC nominee sentenced for DWI in 2007

T. Eloise Foster, Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett's nominee to the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, was sentenced for driving while impaired in Howard County in 2007. She was sentenced to unsupervised probation, alcohol counseling, 10 hours of community service, and fined $200, according to The Baltimore Sun.

Foster was pulled over by a Maryland state trooper on Interstate 95 in Howard in June 2007. She failed several sobriety tests, and was charged. Foster was budget director for the state of Maryland at the time.

Leggett, who was a victim of a drunk driver himself in a 2009 crash, called for tightening drunk driving laws in December 2015. The County Council is scheduled to interview Foster Tuesday at 11:00 AM. They are then scheduled to confirm her appointment 55 minutes later.

"The Montgomery County Council joins our Police Chief in calling for the State of Maryland to strengthen our laws against drunk and impaired driving," Council President Nancy Floreen wrote to the Montgomery County delegation to the Maryland General Assembly in February of this year.

Drivers with interesting driving records seem to be joining WSSC often these days. The Washington Post reported that the agency's latest chief was involved in five accidents while driving WSSC vehicles. She totaled one of those WSSC vehicles in a rollover accident on the Capital Beltway, the Post reported.