According to Todd Darden, assistant city manager, the condition is a seasonal one caused by the basic premise of supply and demand.

“We've received a lot of calls from city water customers saying there's an odor coming from the water supply,” said Darden. “This is something that happens pretty much every year during the summer when things get extremely hot and dry.”

Darden said the problem is temporary, and is being spurred on by excessive customer demand.

“We see this any time things get really dry and and there's an excessive demand for water because of it,” said Darden. “The increased demands on the water supply have created a strain on the supplying system, which causes the city to have to limit the flushing of fire hydrants and water lines. Right now we're only flushing these systems in the case of an emergency.”

Darden said the problem should dissipate soon, and while it's certainly not an appealing attribute, the odor poses no health risks to consumers.

“We'll resume normal flushing operations as soon as possible,” he said. “People need to know that this in no way effects the quality of standards of the water we're supplying. It's still a clean and safe source of water.”

Contact Staff Writer Thomas Jenkins at 263-7331 ext. 232 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it