This time, the lack of water pressure caused problems all over the city – in homes, hospitals, restaurants and schools. In the city center, many restaurants were closed at lunchtime, with handwritten signs apologizing on the doors. Even the city center had to close.

The downtown cafe “Lula’s” was one of the few shops that was still open.

“We’re going to hold on,” said August Langley, who runs the store. Only a few customers stopped by to see what was going on.

Langley turned on the faucet and showed that the water was just trickling out. Fortunately, the cafe doesn’t use much water, he said. Washing the dishes might take a little longer, though.

Ervin insisted that the city is managing its water system appropriately and said the city’s transparency is proof that it is doing everything it can.

“The concern should be if we are not informing our citizens,” she said. “We believe in transparency. We know what the system needs and we are responding to it.”

But residents are frustrated when there is an unexpected loss of pressure or the water in the bathtub and toilet becomes cloudy.

Langley said there have been some of these issues at Lula’s, but he is confident the city is doing its best to resolve the problem.

“I think they are ahead of their time when it comes to fixing the problem,” he said.

What is the city doing about the problem?

After months of work, the city now has the first steps of a plan to fix the water discoloration problem.

Florence announced in August 2023 that it would form a water quality task force to address the water discoloration. Since then, the city has hired an outside engineer to develop a series of solutions.

One solution is to improve the city’s filtration system.

Another solution is to systematically study the groundwater system. Over the next two years, the city plans to take each of its 14 groundwater plants offline, examine any problems, implement solutions and put them back into operation. However, this will not be completed until 2026.