The City of Gunter says the downtown water well is maintaining the city's water levels after concerns the city would be without water by Thursday morning; residents are still being asked to severely restrict water usage for the time being.
In an update on Thursday afternoon, the city manager said the downtown water well is keeping the water flowing but Emergency Water Restrictions remain.
The city issued an emergency notification to all City of Gunter water customers on Wednesday night that said in part, "due to excessive water consumption, the city's water storage tanks are unable to refill."
Residents are asked to stop any non-essential water usage until further notice, which means no outdoor watering and not using dishwashers and washing machines. Residents have also been asked to restrict the use of showers and sinks.
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The water emergency notification said Gunter Public Works is working to resolve issues.
On Wednesday, the city said notified residents of water restrictions because two of the city's three water wells had failed after running continuously because of the extreme heat and water demand. Gunter Mayor Mark Millar said to get by, the city of Sherman had supplied Gunter water through Mustang Water Supply.
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"Sherman had to cut them off last night because their wells had gotten to the point where they had to turn them off and let the aquifer replenish," Millar said. "By doing that, we did not get any water last night. That was the fear. We estimated we would be out by sometime this morning."
Millar credited residents who conserved water Wednesday for the city's water supply still being intact.
"As of right now, we’re doing OK. That’s it. Just OK," he said. "We’ve got 95% of the people who are complying. It’s the 5% that’s the problem. We’re going to put out a message later today, that compliance is no longer voluntary."
One longtime resident of Gunter said issues with water are common in the city.
"Right now, we’re conserving any water we’re using. Can’t even wash our clothes," she said. "I’m telling you, every summer. Every summer. So yeah, it’s frustrating."
She added, there is confusion about exactly how much to conserve.
"Some of us might conserve. Others might not. At this point, it’s like, we don’t know," she said. "We just went to the store to buy more water."
City Manager Rick Chaffin called the failure of the wells "disappointing, frustrating and frankly, embarrassing" as he called for residents to restrict water usage while crews worked 24-7 to get both wells fully functional.
Chaffin said the city can no longer rely on wells as a reliable water source, especially with the Grayson County town's growth. Chaffin said a proposal for a long-term solution for a reliable source of water would be presented to the City Council soon.
Gunter is located about 52 miles north of Dallas.
