Water issues continue to plague the southern Chicago suburb of Dixmoor after multiple water main breaks Monday and Tuesday led to schools being closed, residents under a boil order and a plethora of frustration and confusion.
As of 10:30 p.m. Tuesday night, officials didn't confirm whether students could return to the classroom. However, just after 6 a.m. Wednesday, officials confirmed that all Dixmoor schools would be open.
Officials say that the village, about 20 miles south of Chicago, has seen seven water main breaks over the course of just two days, including five that occurred Tuesday. The latest break happened near 145th and 147th Streets, close to Martin Luther King Elementary School and not far from the Dixmoor Water Department.
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According to authorities, despite some fixes, two of Dixmoor's three schools had been closed Monday and Tuesday.
And while village officials say residents in the affected areas are under a boil advisory, some neighbors say they weren't notified by the city and had only learned of the boil order through news reports.
"Don't know what happened to Robo Calls, as I have signed up for them, but never have received any," one post in the Facebook group "Dixmoor Deserves Better" read. "This Mayor does not inform the residents here, guess he doesn't think he has to.
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The latest breaks aren't the first time Dixmoor has experienced water issues. In July, multiple water main breaks led to water service being shut off for the entire village, and a state of emergency declared by officials.
The July emergency comes not more than a year after the village encountered significant problems with its water system, water pumps and dangerously low water pressure.
Dixmoor usually receives its water from the nearby city of Harvey. But for several weeks in the fall of 2021, water pressure in the community was nearly four times lower than the required 36 pounds per square inch, according to officials.
Broken pipes were located and replaced, but turbine issues at the village’s water facility caused the problem to drag on and required significant repair to get the system back up and running.
The village recently received a $2 million investment to assist with water issues, and to install new water mains. However, that project isn’t slated to begin until the spring of 2023.
