City leaders have unanimously approved personnel changes and new equipment in response to two major water emergencies that took place over the holiday break.
“We spent a hectic Christmas and the week after Christmas in our Public Works Department,” said the department’s director Jim Gray at the Jan. 12 meeting of the City Council.
At the meeting, council approved $220,000 to add three new positions and upgrade another for the Water Distribution and Grounds departments, and about $40,000 for equipment.
This was based on the recommendation of city staff, who reported an electrical load imbalance at the North Pump Station during Christmas, which could have disrupted water service to approximately half the city, as well as a major blowout of a 12-inch water pipe that staff faced at the same time, Gray confirmed.
“We are just getting hammered when we have events like that, and we don’t see it changing a lot as we go on because of the age of the system,” Gray said.
During Winter Storm Uri, city staff had to work overtime responding to emergency situation of losing major utilities during the record-breaking freeze, and this time was not very different, Gray said.
“During the five-day event, the Water Distribution worked approximately 451 overtime hours and missed the holiday with their family,” wrote Gray in his report to the council. “The street and grounds division worked another 63 hours of overtime during this time period for 514 hours of overtime… I probably worked another 40-45 hours during this time. We have had some water distribution employees who state they have worked through the last three Christmases.”
Council members expressed their support for the move.
“We just appreciate your team’s hard work and dedication,” said Mayor Brandt Rydell.
Garcia said he saw Public Works staff working at 2 a.m. over Christmas Eve.
“While everyone was at home opening up presents with their family or sleeping, the water department guys, the public works guys were out there busting it,” said District 4 Councilman Robert Garcia. “I greatly appreciate the water department, the street department, and all those guys because (half the) Taylor community could have run out of water that evening or that week or that weekend. They got to celebrate Christmas because of men and women like that.”
