Lemoore ends city-wide restrictions on water as planning begins for new tank

It was about 1:30 p.m. on June 21 that one of two 1.5 million gallon water storage tanks located adjacent to West Hills Community College exploded, causing the death of a contractor working on the tank. A Lemoore city worker was injured in the blast.

Olson, in his capacity as city manager and the director of emergency services, issued a proclamation asking citizens to limit their use of water. The blast destroyed one of the two 1.5-million-gallon storage tanks and also resulted in the temporary loss of use of two of the city’s wells, sites 13 and 14.

“We are up as of yesterday,” said Olson. “People can water on their regular days now. “Outdoor watering restrictions I lifted as of last night.” He added that washing cars can resume tomorrow (June 8).

“We’re back to normal, but the only thing we are missing is a 1.5-million-gallon water tank.”

Olson went on to say that the water tanks are insured. “We’re demolishing the old tank and that should be done any day now. “We will build a new tank.”

It turns out that the remaining 1.5-million-gallon tank was not damaged when the other tank exploded. “We already had it inspected and it’s fine,” said the Lemoore City Manager.

While many of the city’s lawns felt the sting of water restrictions, Olson said the town’s residents appeared to adhere to the restrictions. “Enough people adhered to the restrictions, and we kept businesses running,” he said.

“Enough people adhered to the restrictions that we didn’t go below 20 PSI on our system, and we were able to maintain pressure. We never had to issue a boil water notice, and we kept our businesses running. That was our goal.”

Olson said that the city would begin the bidding process for a new tank basically as soon as the destroyed tank is removed from the site.

While things are nearly back to normal, Olson is encouraging common sense when it comes to water, especially during these hot summer days. “Use good water practices,” said Olson. “When people are watering their yards if their water is running over the sidewalks, they’re probably running their sprinklers too long.”