Backlog of water leaks in Lafayette – The Current

Like hundreds of other Lafayette residents, Melissa Pettus has a water leak on the edge of her property. More than a week after Lafayette Utilities System discovered the leak, Pettus learned she was number 524 on the repair list.

“I just called and asked, it’s been a week. What’s going on?” says Pettus. “And then they told me, ‘You’re No. 524.'”

LUS Director Jeff Stewart cites a number of reasons for the leaks. The main culprit is the 2023 drought, which caused the ground around the LUS pipes to shrink and eventually caused a cascading amount of cracks in the water pipes.

“Our total work order list is about 1,100,” says Stewart.

This includes everything from fire hydrant maintenance to pipe leaks, but is an immense amount for a LUS department of 13 employees.

“We average four people per crew, so basically we are staffed with more than three crew members. “The unusually high number of burst pipes and the lack of personnel have led to an above-average backlog,” adds the director.

However, some residents, like Jeremy Meador, are able to skip this backlog because the loss impacts their quality of life. He says that with the low water pressure he is not even able to bathe his children.

Water pressure in Meador’s home was low due to the leak, but LUS crews began working on the leak two weeks ago, making a significant difference in response time compared to other leaks that do not directly impact water in the home .

Meador is still waiting for a full repair. LUS reported his leak and even cut into the road, but he says the job is still half done and the road is sinking.

“They actually cut into the road and then abandoned it on the weekends, so people drove over it and now the road is subsiding,” Meador said. “My neighbors called too; They don’t want the road to their house destroyed.”

There are still personnel challenges

While LUS continues to have 13 employees in the water distribution department, there are widespread vacancies throughout the system.

“In total, LUS is missing 56 positions out of 462 full-time positions in the budget,” says Stewart.

Mayor and President Monique Boulet addressed the staff shortage not only at LUS, but at LCG in general.

Earlier this year, LUS allocated $3 million to address the leaks, and recently the government added an additional $1 million in ARPA funding to make up the shortfall.

The issue is urgent, and Stewart hopes Boulet’s new pay plan, which has received council approval and will take effect in the new fiscal year, will make many unfilled positions more attractive.

“We understand the problems and are working on solutions,” he says.