The wait for water for more than 20 people in Oquawka, Illinois continues. Some have been without water for more than a month because of frozen water service lines and there is no timeline on when the problem might be fixed.
His feelings on a piece of paper, Jim Foster is trying to put into words what the last fourteen days have been like.
“It's really been heck, it's been rough,” he said.
He has no water.
“We can't continue to live like this,” he said.
Not even a drip.
“We have to bring in buckets of water for the toilets,” said Foster.
He along with several others without water shared their frustrations with the Village of Oquawka Board of Trustees Monday, March 3, 2014. The Village Board says they are doing what they can with what they have.
There are two people working on fixing frozen water lines. Those working on the lines say one of the big problems is plastic piping. They say they’ve tried running hot water through, but that does not work. They’ve gone to some homes several times to try to fix the problem.
Many at the meeting Monday night say more man power is needed.
Mayor Sandra Moody agrees the Village needs help. She said she had been contacted by State Senator John Sullivan’s office with an offer for more machinery but said she turned it down because there wouldn’t be anyone to operate it.
She also said she is now waiting for Senator Sullivan’s office to call back to offer help, but could not answer when asked if she felt it was her responsibility as Mayor to reach out for help.
There is bottled water and other water available for residents without water at the Oquawka Fire Department.