Jackson, Mississippi, gets clearance to lift boil water notices weeks after brutal winter storms

All boil water notices in the city of Jackson, Mississippi — put in place after last month’s powerful winter storms — have been lifted, city officials announced in a Facebook post on Wednesday.

“The City of Jackson has officially received clearance from the Mississippi State Department of Health to lift the precautionary boil water notice on its 43K surface water connections served by the OB Curtis and JH Fewell Water Treatment Plants,” the post said.

In the aftermath of the winter storms that pounded parts of the US in February, the city found itself in a water crisis, with thousands of residents and businesses reporting little to no water pressure — and some going without a drop of water for weeks.

The city provided “flushing water” to residents, while organizations also helped distribute water bottles to affected residents.

In a Twitter post late last week, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba wrote he was “grateful” for the outpouring of support “as we continue the work to recover from the February winter storm.”

In a news release posted on the city’s website earlier this week, Jackson officials said they were confident water service had been “largely restored” throughout the city.

Officials added in the news release that water pressure was staying around 90 psi — or pounds per square inch, used to measure water pressure. During last month’s frigid temperatures and fierce storms, the psi dropped to about 37, resulting in the water outages.

“Any remaining incidents of low/no water pressure are likely localized meter issues or broken pipes,” the release said. “We encourage residents to continue calling 311 if they are having any issues so we can investigate.”

Key needs for residents include bottled water, hand sanitizing wipes, flushable wipes, soap, PPE, utility assistance, gift certificates for groceries and help with debris removal, the release added.