Parts of South Dakota go without water service for two weeks
February 10, 2010

The brutal storms that have struck the Upper Midwest this winter have been more than just a nuisance -- they left a lot of people without power and water service. The Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe in north-central South Dakota lost power and water on January 21st and didn't get power back until February 3rd. The region is still trying to restore regular power to its full service region, though the manager of the power co-op in the area expects the power repairs alone to cost millions of dollars. An estimated 14,000 people lost water service when the water system lost its electricity.

Water and wastewater systems alike depend upon reliable power service. That power can obviously be lost for weeks at a time. Engine-driven backup systems can be an enormously valuable insurance policy against the loss of power and can keep ordinary people from having to suffer without safe drinking water in a time of need. A storm that's bad enough to cause widespread power outages can also be bad enough to make it impossible to truck in temporary water supplies. The best backup system is one that can operate on its own when the weather makes travel impossible.

February 2010
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last revised February 2010