Dark, Sludgy Water Coming Out Of Hanson Taps
HANSON (CBS) -- A local water crisis is turning tap water in Hanson dark and sludgy.
Homeowner Ron Wilson said the water coming out of his tap is "pretty gross."
"It looks like root beer," said Wilson. "The color is dark mahogany, and the residual is black silt."
Hanson's water tank is currently down, and the town has been borrowing Brockton's water. The problem, says Hanson Water Superintendent Richard Muncy, is that the difference in water pressure between the two towns' systems is causing pipes in Hanson to rupture.
"We have had a broken pipe every week since the middle of March," said Muncy.
He said fluctuations in Brockton's water pressure caused sediment in the water mains to be stirred up, and the water has been full of iron and manganese as a result.
Wilson said it's been happening way too frequently.
"You wouldn't want to bathe in it, and you definitely wouldn't want to wash your dishes in it or do your laundry in it or anything," said Wilson.
Hanson resident Ron Jones stocked up on gallons of water.
"We've had this going (on) for quite some time now," he told WBZ-TV's Bill Shields on Friday.
"It always gets remedied, maybe not as timely as people think it should be but I think the town is doing the best they can do under the circumstances."
Fellow resident Pearl Jones says some days the water is clear and others it's brown.
"You cannot depend on anything," she says. "You just don't dare to do too much."
Muncy said the problem should be fixed in about two and a half weeks.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Karen Twomey reports
