'We’ve got to fix the pipes.' Patience runs thin after another Paterson water main break
Officials say it happened Saturday on North First and Arch Street.
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The latest affected areas in North Jersey’s water woes on Sunday were parts of Paterson and all of Fair Lawn after another water main break in Paterson.
As of Sunday night, all Fair Lawn residents should have at least some water back. The boil water order will stay in place for at least 48 hours, but could last far longer. City officials said a full repair could take as long as 7 to 10 days.
One resident lost water Sunday morning at an inopportune time.
“I hopped in the shower,” said Frank Stupsky. “I got just about done, and my leg, I saw a little soap on there. That's it - the water stopped. There was not even a drop. It was horrible. I’ve never experienced anything like it with no water at all. I've lived here 50 years.”
It’s become a common issue around the region. This latest water main break comes more than two weeks after another one in Paterson that is still forcing Haledon residents to boil their water.
“Although they're agreeing to the boil water advisory, they're finding film and sediment in the line even after you boil the water,” said Mayor Michael Johnson. “That's not safe at all. How do we not have a secondary backup?”
A full line replacement costs millions. It’s an issue that has caught the attention of Gov. Phil Murphy. He addressed it this week on News 12’s exclusive “Ask Governor Murphy” program.
“You try like heck to prevent this from happening. We've had a massive replacement of infrastructure, in particular lead pipe infrastructure, during our time in office,” Murphy said. “Unfortunately, we're living in a legacy infrastructure part of the country. You can't flip a light switch.”
