Residents upset over yellow water coming out of faucets
Residents at an Indio community are upset over discolored, smelly water coming out of their faucets. Dozens of resident sent us their photos, videos, and called into our newsroom to report water issues.
Neil Ballard and his wife discovered the discolored water in their home in the Indian Palms community in Indio.
“My wife noticed that the toilet was brownish in color and naturally she blamed me,” Ballard told KESQ and CBS Local 2’s Jake Ingrassia. “But she flushed it and it was still brown. … It wasn’t me, so we kept flushing the toilet and it continued.”
Water was flowing brown or yellow from Bollard’s shower, sink and toilet.
A person even posted to a neighborhood group that the water stained her white laundry.
Residents said the water company told them it was safe to use and drink, but if it’s coming out brown with an odor, they said they wouldn’t drinking it.
Katrina Rio, a resident in the same community, said she had to buy gallons of water to bathe her 3-year-old son.
“The water is coming out of our faucets is smelly and doesn’t look or feel right so we just wanted to take that extra step as parents,” Rios said.
In a statement, Indio Water Authority said the discoloration was caused by sediment like silt, rust and minerals being stirred up after a nearby well was put back into service.
Residents said they were looking to know what was going on sooner.
“Let us know that, hey, this is exactly what happened, this is exactly what’s going on and give us a list of why it’s okay for now until it gets resolved,” Rios said.
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