Teams are working to resolve water issues in Pinellas following Hurricane Helene

Residents of St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island and Tierra Verde are still under a boil water notice as of Wednesday morning after Hurricane Helene caused significant damage to their water systems.

More than 100 utility workers from Pinellas County and several other Florida communities are on the barrier islands making repairs to restore drinking water service as quickly as possible.

A crew was in a Treasure Island neighborhood Monday afternoon stopping a leak in a water main that supplies a home there. Water sprayed from the hole they had dug to stop the leak until the team could plug it.

Gary Dorsey said after a 12-hour shift he lost track of how many similar tasks they had completed that day.

“I’ve been doing this for 40 years and have never seen it this bad, so we’re praying for those affected,” said Dorsey, a county heavy equipment specialist.

In the first few days after Helene hit the area with storm surges of several feet and strong winds, the county discovered more than 400 leaks, according to public information officer David Connor. This number has probably increased.

Leaks cause water pressure to drop, which poses a safety risk

Some damaged pipes were also buried under meters of sand, which Helene pushed onto streets and lawns.

Another major challenge is that the storm flooded the Gulf Beach Water Booster Station in St. Pete Beach, which remains offline. The county now relies on another station further north to provide water pressure to southern beach communities.

But given the many damaged pipes, that wasn’t enough. “These leaks put stress on the entire system, as if a faucet were constantly running,” said Nory Hancock, assistant director at Pinellas County Utilities.

“If there is not enough pressure and water is constantly flowing through the pipes, it creates what we call aging water and then bacteria can grow on it and the water can become unsafe to drink,” she said.

For this reason, it is important that residents of communities where boil water is in effect be careful not to drink the water, even if they see it flowing from their tap. Hancock recommends using bottled water when possible, but if they must use water for drinking, cooking or brushing teeth, they should first boil it for at least a minute.

Residents and business owners may have to pay for some repairs

Stopping the leaks is critical to increasing water pressure throughout the fire hydrant system and returning residents to clean drinking water. Once pressure returns to acceptable levels, Hancock said water quality teams will assess when it is safe to lift the boil water advisory.

However, if the pipes leading to homes are leaking, residents may have to wait longer to use their taps.

The county can only limit leaks associated with private property, Hancock said. From this connection to the house, the property owner is responsible for repairs.

The county notified property owners of the leaks as soon as they identified them and made resources available to help, Hancock said.

“We have a list of licensed contractors and plumbers,” she said. “We want to make sure you choose someone who is reputable.” People should also check with their home insurance to see if it will help cover the costs, she said.

Once the line is repaired, Hancock said people should contact the county and have the water turned back on for their property.

The boil water advisory could be lifted in the coming days, Hancock said, but repairs at the Gulf Beach Water Booster Station could take longer. So even if residents can start drinking their tap water again, Hancock said they should expect water pressure to be lower than usual for a while.

The district will provide an update on water repairs today at 11:30 a.m

If residents have any questions, they can contact utility customer service (727) 464-4000.