READY – or NOT!
On October 1st our Emergency Preparedness had a work out.
Water to our wonderful apartment was non-existent – as well
as to the entire building! And later we learned that outage included many other buildings on the block!
Then the notice came requesting that all vehicles in
underground parking AND the guest lot across 1st Ave should be moved
– both would be inaccessible for an indeterminate amount of time.
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| North entrance blocked off |
However, the Elks parking garage (that is also used as guest parking) would be available, but only accessible from South Temple St – meaning a short walk along a very busy and public street from that parking to our apartment
WHAT?!?!?
And then the news: a water line on 1st Ave had burst, the fire department had given notice to turn off the water main, and repairs would take an unknown amount of time. We would be notified when water was on again.
So much for the luxury of a long, hot soak!
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| Initial dig for water main on1st Ave, looking downhill West |
For how long?
My first concern was the laundry – whew! A full dryer, and
an unfolded batch on our guest bed created a modicum of reassurance.
Oh well, at least we already had a case or two of bottled
drinking water.
Then reality upped the ante!
Elder Ames always ensures the dishwasher is full after
supper and starts a load after breakfast. Clean dishes were ready to put away –
but wait – do we have disposables? Not many! We put those on a list for the
future.
OH DEAR! What about going to the bathroom and washing hands?
Elder Ames was prepared. We brought two 5-gallon jugs with
us from home, and he had ensured they were both filled and standard 1. storage
precautions (1/2 tsp bleach per gallon) were followed.
Gratitude flooded over me as he dutifully lifted a jug to the kitchen counter, screwed the spigot in place, placed the jug so the spigot was out over the sink, and uncapped the air value. AND he went one better! He filled a large pitcher with water for the bathroom.
A pleasant surprise was discovering we still had sufficient disposable
sterile wipes there – so we added more of those to our list of future
preparedness items.
We managed fairly well until service was restored. I awoke to the sound of water coming on about 11:30 pm and checked all the faucets etc.
When that notice came it suggested turning on taps and allowing the water to
run for about 10 minutes before using – and not to worry if some odd odors or
discoloration were evident at first.
The next morning I slept in a bit, and dreaming of an 'after work' relaxing soak, pulled my oily hair into a standard pony tail as we dashed off to work with breakfast bars and fruit for each of us in our bag. Our car remained parked in Elks Parking as the street was still closed.
When we walked home for lunch, the water seemed somewhat
minimal, as if not fully on, and dripped to a slow stop just before we hurried
off to some afternoon appointments and errands in Bountiful.
Then came the NEXT news!!
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| 2nd water main dig East of inital break |
ANOTHER water main break! Water off again!! We did NOT
bother to hurry home, but were relieved that further notices about A/C also
being affected (OFF), and “being considerate of others” regarding water placed
in the lobby for residents were not a personal concern.
We decided to enjoy some additional time at the Bountiful Temple.
Then we went shopping, and picked up some disposables and two extra cases of bottled water.
Can we share? Who might need a bit of water?
How long might the water be off
this time?
Hmmm ...????
What else might we prepare for? 2.
Do we have gloves? What kind?
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| Looking South - block closed for most of Oct. |
1. The CDC and EPA recommend adding 8 drops of unscented liquid chlorine bleach per gallon for standard 5–6% sodium hypochlorite bleach, or 6 drops per gallon if using the more concentrated 8.25% formulation now common on store shelves — getting the concentration right matters, since 8 drops of 8.25% bleach over-chlorinates the water. Double the dose for water that is cloudy, colored, or very cold. This maintains residual chlorine protection for approximately 6 months.
