Brown water and warnings of toxic bacteria in the water supply have left residents of a small Texas town seriously concerned about their health.
Dozens of homes in Floresville, outside San Antonio, have been dealing for nearly two years with brown, chlorine-smelling drinking and bathing water that recently tested positive for dangerous E.coli.
The presence of E.coli in the water was discovered in September, according to a notice sent by the company that owns the well that supplies water to residents.
“Fecal indicators are microbes whose presence indicates that water may be contaminated with human or animal waste,” a notice sent in September by the Central States Water Authority alerted residents.
“Fecal indicators are microbes whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal excrement,” the advisory reads. “These bacteria can make you sick and are especially worrying for babies, young children, and people with weakened immune systems.”
Concerned for her health and that of her children, Floresville resident Brandi Knighton called the well’s owner, the Central States Water Authority (CSWA), seeking clarity as their only source of water was contaminated with harmful bacteria.
‘I call the company and ask them: ‘What’s going on? Do I boil my water? Is it safe for you to drink this? And no one can answer me. Even talking to the supervisor, she couldn’t tell me if my water was safe for my six children to drink,” Knighton said. KSAT News.
Knighton and her husband, Jason, have installed a whole-house filtration system as a more cost-effective solution, rather than constantly buying bottled water like others have been forced to do.
‘Everyone in this neighborhood has to buy bottled water. So who pays for this? said concerned resident Carrie Wilcoxson.
Other residents have to run the sink and bathtub faucets for several minutes to remove the discoloration.
Concerned for her health and that of her children, Floresville resident Brandi Knighton called the Central States Water Authority seeking clarity because her only water source was contaminated with harmful bacteria. In the photo: Brandi with her husband, Jason Knighton.
Even with the filtration system, Jason says you need to replace the filters monthly, if not more frequently. “These filters should last at least six months and up to a year, but now we are changing our filters at least once a month,” he said.
‘Everyone in this neighborhood has to buy bottled water. So who pays for this? Resident Carrie Wilcoxson said
Even with the filtration system, Jason says you need to replace the filters monthly, if not more frequently.
“These filters should last at least six months and up to a year, but now we change them at least once a month,” he said.
‘I feel disgusted. If I didn’t have this system, my water would look worse than that. When my children bathe or when we shower, what we drink, what we cook with. How clean do you feel about that? “That’s the water that comes into your house,” Jason added.
Other residents have expressed concern about the strong odor of chlorine, which is often used in small amounts during the water purification process to kill harmful bacteria.
I am the first house to come out of the well. It’s so strong you can’t breathe it, let alone drink it. “I have asthma and it’s too much,” Wilcoxson said.
He added that there are no boil water advisories when discoloration appears.
‘The water company says: “It may look unpleasant, but it’s safe to drink.” I don’t care what they’re saying. This water is not safe to drink. That sediment is rusting our water heaters and galvanizing other metals. So how can it be safe for our stomach? Wilcoxson said.
Neighbors created a Facebook group to inform each other about the situation.
‘Four days ago we did a survey about which water smelled like strong chlorine. It shows 16 people, which is about 70 percent of the neighborhood,” Wilcoxson said.
As a result, residents’ bills are also piling up.
‘CSWR purchased the well in 2020. In 2021, we started seeing brown water and highly chlorinated water frequently. And yet, in 2022, the water company CSDR asked to increase their rates,” Wilcoxson said. Pictured: CSWR water well and filtration system in Floresville
Wilcoxson says his porcelain toilets are stained from discolored water constantly running through faucets and pipes.
‘CSWR purchased the well in 2020. In 2021, we started seeing brown water and highly chlorinated water frequently. And yet, in 2022 the CSDR water company requested to increase its rates,” Wilcoxson explained.
‘Our bill went up. So you think maybe the water quality will increase or add filtration, and it won’t. So our bills went up, but our water got worse,” Knighton added.
CSWR-Texas told KSAT News this week that it would “evaluate possible solutions, such as installing automatic dischargers, which would reduce the need for residents to manually discharge their lines on their own.”
The company added that its team was on site to test and review the systems on a weekly basis, further stating that “all disinfection equipment in the water system is fully operational and operating effectively.”
The statement did not address a resident’s water bottle charges for the well filtration system.
Also this week, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality confirmed that it is conducting an investigation into complaints it has received from residents.
Wilcoxson also filed a case with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office and has been in contact with state Sen. Judith Zaffrini, who she says is helping with possible long-term solutions.
