Atlanta officials were slowly repressuring the city's water system Saturday after corroding water pipes burst in downtown and Midtown, forcing many businesses and attractions to close and affecting water service in area homes.
The city was handing out cases of water and setting up portable toilets at several fire stations and first responders were checking high rise residences to see if the elderly or other vulnerable residents were OK.
''Water is a valuable, critical resource and cities can't function and lives can't function without it,'' Mayor Andre Dickens said during a news conference Saturday. ''It's absolutely at the top of our list.''
The problems began Friday morning when water gushed into the street where three large water mains intersect downtown, causing water problems at two hospitals, a city jail, a county jail and local shelters. A separate break occurred later in Midtown, adding to the problem.
Officials were widely criticized for being slow to update citizens on the situation. The city and its water management department sent out an update after 8 p.m. Friday and waited more than 12 hours to update residents again. Dickens didn't address the media until 2 p.m. Saturday and explained he was in Memphis when the problem began.
Someone in the affected area posted flyers around the neighborhood asking ''Don't have water?'' and ''Help us find our mayor.''
Dickens promised updates every two hours until the situation is resolved.
''Overnight, we did not do the best job of communicating. We could have done a better job over the past day, and for that, I apologize,'' he said.
