The City of St. Cloud residents complained about problems with their water since 2017. We first reported the problem on Monday, and the water quality concerns continue. The city is continuing on their plan to clean out the system while also investigating the additional concerns. 

Sal Contello is a long time St. Cloud resident, but it wasn’t until a couple of months ago that he started noticing brown water. He said the water got even darker over the weekend. 

“It is not right that we have to sit there and drink brown water, brush our teeth with brown water, bathe in brown water… Stain all of our stuff in our home,” Contello said. 

It’s something several people living in the area have complained about recently. But the City said it is unclear if this is related to the ongoing problems that St. Cloud has dealt with for several years, like water plant failures and resin leaking out into pipes.

The point of contact for the City of St. Cloud, Maryemma Bachelder, met Spectrum News 13 off Canoe Creek Road where unidirectional flushing was happening Thursday afternoon. With this type of cleaning, it’s the second round and something that was already in the works since last year. 

“This has been an ongoing issue as you know and we rebuilt part of our plant, Bachelder said. “We have taken a lot of steps, we’ve cleaned our underground storage tanks, flushed our main transmission line and as I mentioned we have been working for over a year on flushing and re-flushing these lines and we continue that effort for as long as it takes.”  

Contello posted to Facebook to express his frustration and while he is grateful for the City workers that came to his home to fix the pipes, he worries the problem may continue down the line.

He wishes the Council members would do more about his situation and that of his neighbors. Toho Water Authority will take over water management operations in October. 

But Contello is unsure if that will bring any relief at all. 

“I really hope they do. I really hope they do. I hope maybe they can make a difference. Because as far as I am concerned, the City isn’t,” Contello added.  

The city said they have gathered samples from the homes on streets with state names to investigate the source. On Friday, city workers will flush out that area as well. 

Residents may note a reduction in water pressure and some discoloration following the flushing. 

The city is asking folks to run their faucets for 1-2 minutes until it clears out and to call them at 407-957-7344, if the problem persists.