GROVELAND, Fla. – A lightning strike sparked days of frustration for thousands of Groveland residents. After the city’s water treatment plant lost power, thousands of homes were placed under a boil water notice—sending people rushing for bottled water. For many residents, it’s just the latest in a series of water problems.
A lightning strike is being blamed for water issues in Groveland that left thousands of residents under a boil water notice this week. City officials said the strike caused a power surge that damaged one of the city’s water treatment plants, knocking out power.
The city said it has handed out more than 500 cases of bottled water since Tuesday, with dozens of cars lining up at Cherry Lake Preparatory Academy to pick up free water.
“I have company. I told them, ‘No, no, no. Don’t brush your teeth. You need bottled water or you need to boil it first,’” Groveland resident Maria Aricyn said.
Another resident, Beverly Kimber, said she’s been relying on family for basic needs while the city works to restore service.
“I don’t know if they can keep doing this daily. I’m going to my daughter’s in Lake Mary, and I’m going to take a shower over there,” Kimber said.
Officials also said the lightning strike knocked out the plant’s backup generator. Public works officials said nearly half the homes in their service area — about 3,500 — were impacted, but the boil water notice was lifted Wednesday afternoon.
The outage comes after other water issues in the city. Several neighborhoods reported brown-colored water two weeks ago after the city flushed fire hydrants.
“We took a major level of iron from the aquifer into our system, which is not toxic. It’s just uncomfortable for people to see the water turn darker,” said TJ Fish, the city’s director of transportation and public works. The water concerns are happening as customers prepare for another 10% water rate increase in October.
“It’s hard. I’m on one income, and I’m trying to conserve between taxes, water, and everything else,” Kimber said.
“Prices are going up too fast and too much,” Aricyn said.
Fish said the additional revenue will go toward upgrading the city’s aging utility system, which has been in place for about 50 years.
“The big increase happened two years ago, and it’s 10% for three years in a row,” Fish said.
The last hike in that plan will happen next year.
Fish said the money will also help fund a $265 million project that includes building a new water treatment plant — an effort he said should address many of the problems residents have been experiencing.