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As Atlanta continues efforts to restore water service, businesses struggle to recover from shutdowns – WSB-TV Channel 2

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ATLANTA — Atlanta work crews finally finished repairing Midtown’s broken water main at 11th and West Peachtree Wednesday morning.

While water service is restored, the Atlanta Department of Watershed Management said residents may still see water flowing from hydrants across the city when they pressurize the system .

In the wake of the breaks and repairs, city leaders said summer programs are expected to resume Thursday, which would be big news for stores and restaurants that have remained empty or closed for nearly a week as work was in progress.

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Channel 2’s Michael Seiden I spoke to a Midtown restaurant owner who said 50 employees were out of work while they waited for the water to be turned back on.

Chip Ney owns the Steamhouse in Midtown. He told Seiden that in some ways the water crisis is again like the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It’s killing me, it’s killing me!” said Ney, speaking about what it was like to be shut down during the water outage.

Ney said he was eager to reopen his restaurant, which was closed Friday due to the outage.

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Referring to the cost of such a long shutdown, Ney said it cost “a ton of money!” » and estimated it at several tens of thousands of dollars. Explaining why the figure might be so high, he replied: “Yes, it’s a weekend in Atlanta. »

Ney is not alone either.

The owner of the 11th Street Pub had to close his doors on Friday. Over the weekend, a ruptured water main caused water to shoot into the air, damaging an awning and even blowing out a window.

“It’s been horrible,” Ney said.

As he continues to monitor the situation, he said he is in close contact with more than 50 employees, who he said are primarily living paycheck to paycheck.

“I feel really bad for the people who work here. They have bills to pay like everyone else,” Ney said.

Still, relief for its employees could soon be coming.

At a Monday press briefing on the water crisis, Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said the city would establish a $5 million relief fund for businesses facing losses due to the current water crisis.

Ney said he’s also contacting his insurance company, but for now he’s just focused on getting back to his usual activities.

“Open tomorrow, all of our staff is ready to come back,” Ney said. Channel 2 Action News Wednesday evening.

As for the city’s aid program, details and criteria are still being finalized, but as soon as they become available, Channel 2 Action News will share what he can.

As for what’s next, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Federal Emergency Management Agency will review the city’s pipeline system and recommend changes, then a committee will work to make those changes happen.

This panel will be led by former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin.

Dickens said improvements to the water system would likely cost billions of dollars.

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