Marion residents took to social media last week to discuss problems with the city’s water. Marion’s water system has been plagued with outages and other issues over the past several years as the city’s aging infrastructure experiences problems.
Marion resident Tracy Reynolds posted a video on Thursday of the water from her tap as she filled a clear plastic bottle with it. The water was tinged a dark yellow- brown as it filled the bottle.
Other residents posted about their experiences over the next few days. One resident, Karen Nyman, commented on a post made by Mayor Dexter Hinton to ask him about the discoloration issues. Nyman’s comment also asked about the city’s plan for communicating about water issues, such as when the water would be clear and safe to drink again, with its citizens: “WHEN AND HOW will the city communicate all of this to the residents of Marion?”
“If you have respectfully reported your issue to City Hall the department is working to address it,” Hinton replied.
Hinton’s post appeared to have been deleted later.
Hinton addressed questions about the issues at Monday night’s city council meeting, as well, during the council’s public comment period.
When asked how the council would communicate with citizens about emergencies, Hinton said, “We put it on our platform,” referring to the city’s Facebook page and website.
However, he said, the water situation last week did not rise to the level of an emergency.
“We only had three reports to the office,” he said. “It has to be an astronomical amount for it to be an emergency.”
