Bellwood boil order lifted after water main break, officials say
BELLWOOD, Ill. (WLS) -- A water boil order for the entire village of Bellwood was lifted on Tuesday after a water main break last Friday, officials said.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gave the village clearance to lift the order after testing 29 water samples.
On Monday, it was a wait and see for Mickey Sangiacomo at his drive-in restaurant.
"We boil everything as far as water that we use in our steam tables and things like that," Sangiacomo said. "We serve no soft drinks out of our fountain drinks. We had to go out and get canned pop today."
Located on Mannheim Road, the family-owned eatery, Mickey's Drive-In, was among thousands of businesses and homes dealing with the precaution.
Village officials said freezing temperatures caused at least one water main break, which impacted the village's water pressure during the overnight hours heading into Christmas Eve.
The break affected about half of the suburb of roughly 19,000 residents, and possibly allowed bacteria to contaminate the water mains.
"Bottled water, so it really didn't affect me because I never drank the water, and, if I'm cooking, I boil the water anyway," Bellwood resident Patricia Wilkins said.
On Monday afternoon, work crews continued repairs at one of the water main break locations on Georgina Lane.
Although water service was restored pretty quickly, the village as a precaution issued a water boil order, asking that all water used for drinking or cooking to be boiled for at least five minutes before use. Water used for bathing did not need to be boiled.
"Since we're bringing the pressure back up, we have put the boil order for the entire community because we want to be safe," Bellwood Mayor Andre Harvey said.
