The City of Winchester will begin the annual program of testing and flushing all of the 1,200 fire hydrants within the City on Friday, March 1, and will continue with this effort through the summer. Customers may notice some discolored water as a result of this program, but no customers will be without water. This discoloration consists primarily of harmless silt and minerals that build up in the water mains and does not affect the safety of the water. If you experience discoloration in your water after crews have flushed the hydrants in your neighborhood, please clear the pipes in your own home by running all water faucets for a minute or two which typically takes care of the problem.
The process of periodically “flushing” fire hydrants is an important preventive maintenance activity and is necessary to maintain a high quality and reliable water system. It is also imperative to make sure the fire hydrants are operational in the event of a fire.
Should water customers have questions or concerns, please call Winchester Public Utilities at 540-667-1815.