Discolored water leaves campus high and dry

Discolored water prompted the UNM Physical Plant Department to shut off UNM’s well-water source Tuesday and use city water instead.
The University issued an emergency notification text message about the problem at 10:43 a.m. and sent an e-mail at 10:44 a.m. The notification warned against “drinking or using any tap water on campus until further notice by request of Physical Plant Department.”

Mary Vosevich, director of the Physical Plant Department, said a sample of the water was sent to a lab for testing to find the cause for the discoloration. Vosevich said they should get the results back today. Until then, UNM will be using city water.

“We will run off city water, which we do occasionally anyway,” she said. “We are having the water tested, and once we have the results of the test, we’ll know more about what caused the discoloration.”

At 4:30 p.m., PPD sent out an alert that said campus housing and food service areas had full water service. At 8:20 p.m., PPD sent out another alert clearing all residence halls for water use and said the rest of the campus should be cleared some time this morning.

Vosevich said a PPD employee discovered the discolored water while doing maintenance work Tuesday morning. She said that UNM switched to city water instead of the well water UNM normally uses. After all pipes are done being flushed, the water will be safe to drink again, she said, and UNM will send another emergency notification message of this.

“Just like in your home, there would be water in the lines, and we have to get the water out of that,” Vosevich said. “We’re doing that to all the buildings now, and the water that’s coming in behind that is city water.”

Joel Straquadine, UNM safety officer, said the UNM community should not use tap water, even to wash hands.
“We’re not recommending anyone uses the water at this time,” he said. “We are still trying to make a determination about what caused the water to turn color.”
Straquadine said that the city water will be available soon.

He said anyone who drank water from a campus tap Tuesday and feels sick should seek medical attention. However, he isn’t sure if there is anything harmful in the water, he said.

“Until the lab results come back, I can’t say, ‘Run to the doctor this second,’” he said.
Vosevich said the discoloration may not be obvious to the naked eye.

“Everyone needs to know this is a possibility in their building,” she said.
Using city water is more costly than UNM water, she said, but UNM switches over several times a year when doing maintenance work.

“When we’re not paying for our own water, we’re paying for city water,” she said. “It’s a little bit more expensive.”