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UPDATE: The Town of Victoria is warning residents that they could experience dirty water as a result of the leak this morning. The good news is that the major leak on 11th and 12th street has been fixed and roads have been reopened. The bad news is that it might take a minute or two to see the impacts go away. 

Water pressure should be returning to normal within the next few hours if not sooner, town officials say.

But more than that, the town staff issued the dirty water warning to try and prevent people from getting sick. We’re talking about the water being used for everything from showers to drinking. Victoria residents who live in the area around 11th Street, 12th Street, Nottoway Boulevard and Main Street are being asked to flush their systems, to help fix the problem. You can do that by using an outdoor faucet. 

The idea is to clean out any toxins, sediment or anything else that might have gotten through, as a result of the leak. It’s a good idea to do the same for both your shower inside and your indoor faucets, as sediment could have built up there as well. 

And yes, there is a chance your water could turn discolored for a bit, even if you let it run for a minute, even now that the work is over. That would be the sediment moving through. As a result of the leak, town officials say the hydrant flushing originally scheduled for this evening has been postponed. 

This isn’t the first major water leak for the town. Part of the problem stems from older infrastructure throughout town. Victoria officials have been working on upgrading everything from the pipes to the monitoring equipment, but that takes time and money.