Update: The Virginia Department of Health has officially lifted the Boil Water Advisory for affected Richmond neighborhoods, Mayor Avula announced Thursday at 2:30 p.m. The advisory, issued earlier this week due to low or no water pressure in parts of the city, was lifted after two rounds of compliance testing showed no contamination. The tests were conducted 16 to 24 hours apart and confirmed the water is safe for consumption. Residents and businesses can now resume normal water use. 

City officials said an after-action review is underway to determine what led to the advisory and how future issues can be prevented. “Residents and businesses expect better, and I am as committed as ever to finding the problems and fixing them,” Mayor Avula said. 

Months after a widespread water outage left much of Metro Richmond without running water for days, City officials issued a new boil advisory Tuesday for several neighborhoods following operational issues at the water treatment plant.

Excessive sediment in the James River initially clogged some filters at the plant around midnight Tuesday, reducing water production but not triggering an advisory, officials said. However, the filters clogged again hours later, prompting the City to issue a boil advisory for areas served by the Ginter Park Tank, including Ginter Park, Carytown, Jackson Ward, Brookland Park, Laburnum Park, Carver, Byrd Park, the Museum District and others.

The advisory expanded Tuesday evening to neighborhoods served by the Cofer Road Tank in South Side, including Ancarrow’s Landing, Blackwell, the Commerce Road Industrial Area, Hillside Court, Manchester and Windsor.

Residents and workers quickly resumed familiar precautions, clearing store shelves of bottled water for drinking and cooking.

 Shoppers arrive at the water aisle of the Kroger on Lombardy Street on Tuesday to find empty shelves following a boil water advisory issued by the City of Richmond.
 Photo by Julianne Tripp Hillian/Richmond Free Press  

“We can’t live without good water,” said Craig Straine, a barber on Brookland Park Boulevard. “It definitely needs to be addressed and fixed.”

Nearby counties Chesterfield, Henrico and Hanover reported no boil advisories after adjusting their systems, with Henrico and Richmond opening emergency operation centers in response.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the City was conducting a second water quality test. Mayor Danny Avula said during a Tuesday evening press conference the advisory could be lifted by Thursday afternoon if both tests show no contamination.

Avula acknowledged residents’ frustrations over another boil advisory and communication challenges but promised ongoing updates.

“This is the challenge when you have a dynamic situation,” he said. “I know that at times that’s going to frustrate people, because these situations are dynamic and the information is going to change.”

The cause of the filter clogging remains unclear. DPU Director Scott Morris said an after-action review will be conducted with the Virginia Department of Health in the coming weeks.

Additional reporting by Mekhi Wilson.