The Decatur City Commission just released the following statement…

To our City of Decatur community:

We want to thank you for your patience and perseverance during the water issues of the past four days. As of Monday night we are no longer under a boil water advisory. While the city provides many essential services, including police and fire, DeKalb County Department of Watershed Management manages the water pipes and sewer system for everyone in the county, including the City of Decatur.

Though we could not fix the source of the problem, the city did try to minimize the impact on city residents and businesses. This included:

• Keeping the public updated with the limited information that we could get via TheDecaturMinute.com blog, theDecaturga.com website, Smart911 call and text alerts, @DowntownDecatur Twitter feed and the city’s Facebook page.
• Ending Saturday’s Slide the City event early.
• Establishing two cooling stations on Saturday at the Decatur Recreation Center and Ebster Gym.
• Bringing in a water filtration tanker to provide water to seniors and special needs residents who could not easily boil water. Firefighters distributed more than 500 gallons of drinkable water.
• Having the Fire Department refill the water in the air conditioning system at Clairmont Oaks so residents of this senior housing facility remained cool.
• Coordinating emergency services with DeKalb County Fire Services so that back-up equipment and water tankers were available.

Our community came together and supported one another by checking on neighbors and sharing water, letting those who did not have running water shower in your homes, supporting local businesses that remained open in compliance with the boil advisory and most important, remaining calm during a trying situation.

We hope a situation like this never happens again. However, emergencies can occur at any time. Here are steps you can take now to be better prepared in case of a future emergency:

• Sign up for Smart911 alerts. The city uses the Smart911 system for phone and text alerts. It is very easy to create a Smart911 profile at Smart911.com. If you already have a Smart911 profile please log in now and make sure you have checked the box to receive emergency alerts. If you need help setting up a Smart911 profile or would like city staff to meet with your neighborhood group or homeowners association, please contact the Decatur Fire Department at 404-373-5092 for assistance.
• Also sign-up for CodeRed alerts. While the City of Decatur uses Smart911 for alerts, DeKalb County uses the CodeRed system. Since you are a resident of both the city and the county, it is a good idea to sign up with both systems so you can be sure to never miss an alert.
• Keep extra bottled water and non-perishable food stored at your home at all times. There should be enough for several days for every member of your household, including pets. More information on how to build an emergency kit is available at Ready.gov.

 

The Decatur City Commission
Jim Baskett, Mayor
Kecia Cunningham, Mayor pro temporare
Fred Boykin, Commissioner
Scott Drake, Commissioner
Patti Garrett, Commissioner

Decatur High School, Decatur GA (pic courtesy of Chris)

Update: Lt. Ross reports that Scott Boulevard has reopened.

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Lt Ross confirms for us that Scott Boulevard is currently closed between West Ponce and Coventry Road due to an accident.

An eyewitness states that the accident occurred just west of Nelson Ferry Road. Tow truck currently on the scene.

Photo courtesy of Julie

The AJC Decatur Book Festival has just announced that tickets will go on sale for both keynote addresses on August 11th.  Here’s the scoop:

Keynote: Tickets for the keynote featuring Erica Jong’s conversation with Roxane Gay on Friday, September 4th at 8p at Emory’s Schwartz Center will be limited to two per person.  Ticket will be available at Emory’s box office or online at Tickets.Arts.Emory.edu.  There will also be a limited number of tickets available at area book stores: A Cappella Books, Charis Books & More, Eagle Eye Books, Tall Tales Books and Little Shop of Stories.

Kid’s Keynote: Tickets for the kid’s keynote with Judy Schachner, creator of the Skippyjon Jones, with also become available on August 11th. You can pickup up to 4 tickets at Charis Books & More, Eagle Eye Books and Little Shop of Stories for the event.

The event moves to Decatur High School’s Performing Arts Center this year.  Schachner will be introducing a new character and picture book, Dewey Bob, at this year’s festival.  The kid’s keynote takes place at 5p on Friday, September 4th.

Full schedule now online!: In addition to announcing keynote ticket details, the Book Fest has also announced that the full schedule for the event is now online.  You can check it out HERE.  If you’ve ever attended before, you know that it’s never too early to start strategizing for this event!

• Jennifer Zyman awards Dish Dive in Kirkwood 2 stars [CL]
• Atlanta according to Daren Wang [CL]
• Photos: Slide the City along Ponce [Decatur Squared]
• Taziki’s Going For Growth in Georgia : Decatur and Buckhead Locations Coming Soon [TNT]
• Decatur’s tax sale scheduled for Aug 4th [Decatur Tax Blog]
• MARTA moves forward with Clayton expansion studies [Saporta Report]
• Atlanta United in talks for training facility site in DeKalb County on Memorial Drive [ABC]

Photo courtesy of Decatur Squared

DeKalb County just sent out this message via Twitter…

UPDATE: DeKalb’s boil water advisory has been lifted.  Click here for more details.

In case you’re wondering, due to lack of updates today.  From DeKalb County just a few mins ago…

DeKalb County announces the precautionary boil water advisory that was issued countywide on Saturday, July 25 is still in effect.

DeKalb Watershed Management sampled 20 water sites on Friday, July 24 and water 40 sites Saturday, July 25, which all showed negative for bacteria. Fifty water sites were sampled on Sunday, July 26, and those results are expected today.

As part of the county’s emergency response, sampling is conducted for both public safety assurance and to stay ahead of any regulatory requirements, following a decrease in water pressure to the system.

The loss in pressure experienced by DeKalb County residents during the weekend was a result of a break in a 48-inch transmission main approximately 20 feet underground in an area with gas, power and other utilities present. These obstacles required substantial coordination and care.

DeKalb Watershed Management maintains 3,200 miles of water lines and 2,600 miles of sewer lines.

Photo courtesy of DeKalb County