Hundreds Line Up for Water in Memphis as Winter Storm Damages Pipes

Hundreds of residents in Memphis, Tennessee, waited in line Tuesday as Memphis Light, Gas and Water (MLGW) began another day of water distribution to those with no water service.

An arctic blast froze much of the U.S. the past few days, with many temperatures plummeting below zero in many states. Memphis temperatures reached single digits, and the cold froze pipes and ruptured water mains throughout the city beginning on Saturday. The damaged prevented vital water from reaching many MLGW customers, leading to a boil-water advisory.

Despite crews working to restore service, many of the company's customers were without water. Hundreds lined up at water distribution sites Monday and Tuesday to receive a case of water.

As of Monday, MLGW had repaired 20 water main breaks and was working on seven more at the time of a press release tweeted by the company. The company had restored water to hundreds of residential and commercial buildings, but hundreds remained. An MLGW representative told Newsweek in an email that full restoration could take days.

In the meantime, the company has been distributing cases of water to users in need. People lined up and waited at three distribution sites on Tuesday. The day before, 1,600 cases of water had been distributed to families with "no water" conditions.

WMC-TV Reporter Sydney Gray shared a video on Twitter showing car after car lined up to receive a case of water.

"LONG LINES FOR WATER," Gray tweeted. "This is just a portion of the line of people trying to get water this morning."

Gray said more water donations would be needed soon to keep up with demand.

Customers who had water were under a boil advisory. Customers also were required to limit their non-essential water uses. One press release said all non-essential water uses such as washing vehicles was prohibited. It also asked its commercial customers to cut back water use by 75 percent unless the water was needed to produce goods and services.

Despite the company's efforts to restore service, many customers on Twitter were critical of MLGW's actions.

"Would you please fix the water issues. You'd think you'd have fixed/rebuilt everything better after last year's freeze," one user tweeted. "Please do better."

"MLGW really has the audacity to overcharge customers like crazy and make us boil our contaminated water," another tweeted.

Others criticized the company for handing out water during hours when people working a regular schedule couldn't visit a site to receive a case.

If they had water, customers were advised to let their faucets drip if temperatures fell below freezing to prevent frozen pipes. Memphis temperatures should rise above freezing and remain there starting Wednesday.