HOUSTON—On the first full day of mandatory water conservation in Houston, some residents were wondering if the city has to follow the same rules.
Under the city’s "Stage Two" water conservation plan, residents have to fix all detectable leaks within 72 hours of discovery – or face some serious fines.
But in many neighborhoods, water leaks were flowing freely on city property.
The reason?
The city is taking an average of 10 days to fix its water leaks and water main breaks.
And there are an average of 700 water main breaks on any given day.
The city isn’t fining itself, but as it turns out, they might not fine homeowners with leaks, either.
At least, not yet.
"If a homeowner makes a good faith effort or conscious effort to fix their problem on their property, then we’re fine with that," Alvin Wright with the City of Houston said.
The last time the city saw this many water main breaks was 11 years ago.
But with the persistent drought and heat wave, things might get much, much worse before they get better.
