Austin Water crews to repair major water line in Southwest Austin beginning Friday; work could cause service disruptions

AUSTIN (Talk1370.com) -- Austin Water is warning utility customers in southwest Austin to limit their water usage and be prepared for potential service outages beginning Friday, as crews work to repair a major water line.

Utility crews will be working on repairs to a 48-inch line near the Davis Lane pump station beginning at 7 a.m. Friday morning, according to the utility.

Repairs to the line are expected to take up to 12 hours but may take longer, depending on field conditions. With the line out of service, utility crews will have limited availability to refill area reservoirs.

"Inspecting, maintaining, and repairing thousands of miles of pipe is a routine occurrence for Austin Water, but any situation that may degrade service to our customers for more than a couple of hours triggers our incident response plan," Austin Water Director, Shay Ralls Roalson said. "While I'm confident that our team will complete the needed repair as efficiently as possible, Austin Water is committed to implementing a well-planned incident response to mitigate any extended customer service issues."

The utility is recommending that affected residents store water for essential uses, roughly one gallon per person per day. An online map of the affected area is available, along with an interactive map at AustinWater.org. Customers in the utility's Southwest A, B, and C pressure zones are impacted, along with wholesale customers of Shady Hollow, High Valley Water Supply Corporation, and Mid-Tex Utility.