ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Alexandria city officials say water has been restored to an apartment complex after three days without water and air conditioning.
Residents at London Park Towers Apartments located at 5375 Duke St. tell WUSA9 that they struggled to do even the simplest tasks.
"I have two kids born with like Asthma, and this humidity, and this weather, and no water and also the situation of the bathrooms, no food, no showers." said father of six Mohamed Bouamama who described the situation as a war zone.
Some residents were seen filling water jugs from a nearby fire hydrant Wednesday night.
Kay Apartment Communities which manages the 458-unit complex says while the City of Alexandria Fire Department was conducting an annual fire hydrant test on Tuesday morning, a private water main ruptured in multiple locations.
The company added in a statement:
"This was an unexpected and unfortunate complication to a test that has been completed annually for many years."
"The water outage is due to several breaks on a private water service line belonging to the London Park Towers Apartments," Virginia American Water said in a statement Wednesday night. "Even though it is not a Virginia American Water line, our team has been working to assist the owner as they make repairs and has offered to help with providing an alternate source for drinking water."
No other water customers have been impacted by the issues at London Park Towers.
For some tenants like Fatima Kumara, the water main break went beyond being an inconvenience. She met with a WUSA9 news crew as she was begging her employer to allow her to keep her job as a caretaker for the elderly.
"I said please help me. Give me one more chance," Kumara said.
Without running water and air conditioning, Kumara says she was unable to go to work for the past three days because doing even the simplest tasks was a struggle. "We don't have water. We have to go to other people's house to take water," she added.
Kumara says she pays $2,200 for a two-bedroom apartment with a den. She says she is left wondering if they will be compensated for the time they were without water and AC.
"The city is going to remain on-site and make sure that the building does everything it can do to right for the residents," Alexandria Deputy City Manager, Yon Lambert told WUSA9.
By Thursday afternoon, Alexandria City officials said all the valves were turned on and the water pressure it back to normal. A boil water advisory is in effect until officials determine through bacterial testing that the water is safe to drink, which could take days.
Residents who are unable to boil their water may use liquid household bleach to disinfect water as an alternative method of purification. The bleach product should be recently purchased, free of additives and scents, and should contain a hypochlorite solution of at least 5.25%. Public health officials recommend adding eight drops of bleach — or about one-fourth teaspoon — to each gallon of water. The water should be stirred and allowed to stand for at least 30 minutes before use.
Officials warned people in the apartments of sediment buildup. Tenants are being asked to remove filters on their faucets to deal with it. City officials say they will remain on scene until the water is determined to be safe. Water bottles are available for tenants, and portable toilets were set up Thursday.