New attention is being paid to contaminants that are byproducts of that treatment. Credit: Shutterstock/ fizkes

East Texas residents rushed to grocery stores to stock up on bottled water Sunday night after a power outage forced the city of Houston to issue a boil water notice, the Texas Tribune reports.

The notice is currently in effect for Houston, Bellaire and a section of West University Place until Tuesday, according to the Tribune. At least for school districts have canceled classes in response.

The crisis began Sunday morning when a power outage at Houston’s East Water Purification Plant caused pressure to dip below state safety requirements. City officials didn’t issue a boil water notice until hours later, resulting in outrage on social media.

However, in public statements, Houston officials said the city’s water supply remains safe. Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner’s office tweeted that the notice was issued due to state regulatory guidelines, a sentient echoed by Yvonne Williams Forrest, the city’s water director.

“Our system maintained pressure. We never lost pressure fully,” Forrest told KHOU-TV. “So there was never an opportunity for anything to enter our system. They just fell below the regulatory requirements.”

Coming soon: SA Current Daily newsletter. We’ll send you a handful of interesting San Antonio stories every morning. Subscribe now to not miss a thing.

Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

Related Stories

This article appears in Nov 16-29, 2022.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...