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UPDATE: Virginia American Water Issues Boil Water Advisory for Hopewell District Customers

UPDATED AT 2:30 p.m. - HOPEWELL, Va. (February 15, 2021) Due to a power outage at Virginia American Water’s water treatment facility in Hopewell resulting from the recent ice storms, the company is reporting a water outage for those customers served by its Hopewell water system. This includes approximately 9,500 customers in the City of Hopewell, as well as the subdivisions of New Birchett Estates, Cedar Creek, Cedar Creek West, Strattford Woods and Mullberry Woods in Prince George County.

Dominion Energy identified the cause of the outage as an issue with one of their transformers, and progress to restore power has been made. Virginia American Water is working to resume water service to customers as quickly and safely as possible. Once water is restored, customers must boil water before consumption according the directions provided.

The company is coordinating with local and state officials and began providing bottled water Monday, February 15 at 10:00 am at Patrick Copeland Elementary School located at 400 Westhill Road. Bottled water distribution will continue until 5:00 PM today and then will resume distribution on Tuesday, February 16. Portable toilets are also available at that site. The company is also delivering water to the hospital, nursing homes and other critical care facilities.

Once water service is restored and until further notice, impacted customers should bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow cooling before using for consumption, drinking, making baby formula, ice cubes, washing vegetables and fruit and for brushing teeth.

Virginia American Water also recommends the following steps:

  • Throw away uncooked food or beverages or ice cubes if made with tap water during the day of the advisory;
  • Keep boiled water in the refrigerator for drinking;
  • Rinse hand-washed dishes for a minute in diluted bleach (one tablespoon of household bleach per gallon of tap water) or clean your dishes in a dishwasher using the hot wash cycle and dry cycle. 
  • Do not swallow water while you are showering or bathing;
  • Provide pets with boiled water after cooling;
  • Do not use home filtering devices in place of boiling or using bottled water; most home water filters will not provide adequate protection from microorganisms;
  • Use only boiled water to treat minor injuries.

We ask that you please share this information with others who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (people in apartment buildings, nursing homes, schools and office buildings).

Updates will be provided on the company’s Facebook and Twitter pages as necessary. If customers have any questions, they may call 1-800-452-6863. Additional information is available on Virginia American Water’s website, www.virginiaamwater.com, under the Alerts Notifications section.

Virginia American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 325,000 people. For more information, visit www.virginiaamwater.com and follow Virginia American Water on Twitter and Facebook.


Media Contacts

Marybeth Leongini

External Affairs Manager

571-344-0998

marybeth.leongini@amwater.com