HELENA — First different-tasting water, and now some people in Helena report cloudy, reddish water. According to city officials, it’s all related to the closing and subsequent reopening of the Ten Mile Treatment Plant.
This past fall, people in Helena noticed a change in the water taste. We looked into the situation and found that the change in taste was due to a change where the city water was coming from. The Ten Mile Treatment Plant was taken offline to replace filters, so the city’s water was solely coming from the Missouri River Treatment Plant
Recently, work at the Ten Mile Treatment Plant was completed, and it was reopened. City of Helena officials say water flowing from that plant stirred up sediment in the pipes which led to the change in water color.
“All the water was coming from the east side of town through town, and now we switched it to go from the west side of town,” City of Helena public works director Ryan Leland said. “It’s just the direction of the flow of the water in the pipes is what’s causing it.”
According to Leland, what people are seeing in the water is iron and other minerals from city pipes.
“The water is safe, it’s safe to drink,” Leland said, explaining the city has tested the water. “We get that it’s not really aesthetically pleasing.”
Some parts of town are seeing more sediment in their water than others, specifically the west side of Helena. Leland said if people notice the reddish water color, they should run their faucets and showers for five to 10 minutes to flush the water.
