HAZARD, Ky. (LEX 18) — The city of Hazard is making gains toward restoring water to customers.
On Tuesday morning, 2,000 customers were without water. It’s about 20% of all customers, which stretch across Perry County.
The reason why their water tanks are so depleted is because of 22 water main breaks which have taken place in the past week, according to mayor “Happy” Mobelini. They are so old that some of them simply crumble when it reached certain low temperatures.
Residents have complained about the seemingly-yearly water issues for years without improvements. The mayor explained replacing the pipes - many of which are made from clay - is easier said than done.
“We have tons of grants we applied for and received, we just have not received the money yet,” Mobelini said
Between the city and county, he said they were approved for 43 million in grant money for water and sewers from multiple sources. None of the money has been received.
‘It is frustrating,” Mobelini said. “We have funding to build a new water plant in Buckhorn, but the division of water has not signed off on it yet.”
As for the immediate issue, he says some people could have their water back in days, while for others, it could be two weeks.
On Facebook, the city shared they would know more in the morning. There is a single central tank that has to reach a certain level before any of the other tanks start receiving water.
