Call it good week in Richmond. Actual water is coming out of faucets that’s drinkable, washable, shampoo-able. Even the toilets flush.
The General Assembly is back in session, the kids are in school and office workers are back at their cubicles.
Businesses have reopened and restaurants are serving again.
Richmond appears to have a responsive mayor, who kicked off Week 1 of the water-crisis postmortem by announcing the resignation (wink, wink) of April Bingham, the city’s embattled public utilities director, and the hiring of Anthony “Scott” Morris, who has an actual engineering degree and most recently worked as the director of water at the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, as interim director.
At last week’s City Council meeting, the mayor vowed to launch a third-party, independent investigation into the water treatment plant meltdown that left the city — along with portions of Henrico and Hanover counties — waterless for nearly a week. Gov. Glenn Youngkin has said the Virginia Department of Health is also investigating the water outage, and state lawmakers are engaged, demanding answers.
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It’s early still, but Avula is showing signs of political acuity. The mayor’s quick replacement of Bingham, his accessibility to the media and outreach with the governor, along with state and regional leaders, is encouraging. As the state bears down on Richmond — Republicans are already brow-furrowing those woke-Democrat-run-cities — Avula is smartly playing the long game. Two of the city’s regional water customers (Henrico and Hanover) are pressing to reduce or eliminate their reliance on Richmond’s water treatment plant. Chesterfield is likely to do the same.
That would be a mistake. We all draw from the same water source — the James River. Richmond’s water crisis is an opportunity to evaluate the entire region’s water system. The counties should resist the urge to retreat to their corners. It will cost hundreds of millions to truly address the city’s aging water infrastructure, but there’s no escaping the fact that Richmond’s Water Treatment Plant is the region’s biggest, most important supplier.
Combining and consolidating the region’s water resources as part of a regional authority is the best path forward. Avula, a physician who led the state’s COVID-19 vaccination efforts under former Gov. Ralph Northam, and led the consolidation of Richmond and Henrico’s health districts in 2018, is uniquely qualified to lead this conversation.
“This … is an opportunity to look at the whole regional water system,” Avula said at last Monday’s City Council meeting.
It’s also important not to forget that we’re still in recovery.
For businesses forced to shutter and families living paycheck to paycheck, the water outage meant losing a week’s worth of income. In response, the city is reviving the Regional Emergency Response Fund, Mayor Danny Avula told City Council, adding that he’s already donated $25,000 from his PAC. The city is also working with the U.S. Small Business Administration to obtain economic injury disaster loans for local businesses, and plans a Water Recovery Week in the near future to promote spending with Richmond businesses, particularly restaurants.
The city’s economic development authority is expected to kick in some funding as well, Avula said last week, and officials extended the deadline for paying city taxes in January by 10 business days.
So raise a glass of tap water. City Hall appears to have competent leadership. Richmond is coming back to life.
But don’t be tempted into complacency. The five-day water crisis left an indelible mark not just on Richmond, but the entire region. To ensure this doesn’t happen again, the city needs help. The only real solution is a regional one.
Updates | Coverage of Richmond water outage from The Times-Dispatch
This is continuing coverage of the water outage in the Richmond region.
Coming off a six-day water crisis, Richmond officials on Saturday morning declared the city’s water supply safe to drink, leaving restaurants, coffee shops, markets and more thrilled to get back to serving the community.
How a meager snowstorm could cripple Richmond's water supply for six calendar days is still being investigated. Here's a timeline of how the events unfolded.
Richmond was engulfed in a water crisis this week that provoked an eerie reminder of lessons learned — or not — from when Hurricane Isabel swept into Virginia in 2003.
This is updated coverage of the water outage across Richmond.
Your turn: How has the water outage had an impact on your life? Tell us your story
How Richmond-area companies are navigating office safety amid boil water advisories
For 8 years, city put off replacement of part that caused water outage
The part is at least two decades old, plant staff said on Friday.
The Richmond water crisis that’s delaying the General Assembly's work has given new urgency to an issue – drinking water and water policy – that’s been simmering for years.
We're speaking to residents and business owners about how the water outage in the Richmond area has had an impact on daily lives. Tell us your information and we may contact you for an upcoming story.
Some Richmond area restaurants have started to reopen, while others remained closed, waiting for the boil water advisory to be lifted. The reasons for both are complex.
Companies around the Richmond area have taken different approaches to navigating the turbulent water crisis that’s left water across the area …
Mayor Danny Avula said the failure of an automatic "switch-gear" that would've transferred the city's water treatment plant to its primary backup power source failed during Monday afternoon's blackout.
Due to the ongoing water crisis, VCU men's basketball and Richmond women's basketball played without fans on Wednesday.
In the days since the collapse of Richmond’s public drinking water utility, two separate documents have emerged that appear to indicate infrastructure problems at the city’s water treatment plant were well-known.
Texas Inn and Abi's Books and Brews supply water to locals during Richmond crisis
Richmond's water problems linger, and the repercussions are being felt in the neighboring counties of Hanover and Henrico.
And as was the case in the days of sports during COVID, the dichotomy of athletic entertainment and human suffering was laid bare.
Mayor Danny Avula said Wednesday that Richmond's boil water advisory would likely not be lifted until Friday.
“This is a great example of what RPS does for communities," said school board member Matthew Percival. "It’s not just about the schools, it’s about being the glue in the communities."
Officials stressed that the boil water advisory is a "precaution." Parts of the Henrico system were reopened to the troubled Richmond water utility Wednesday afternoon.
Some joked about not showering as others shrugged and just said stuff happens. Virginia legislators pledged to finish their work on time despite a delay caused by Richmond's water crisis.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaks about the Richmond water boil advisory, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025.
VCU Athletics announced on Wednesday afternoon that tonight's men's basketball game against Fordham at the Siegel Center will be played without spectators due to the ongoing water outage in Richmond.
Their tractor-trailers carry 6,200 gallons. But that's only enough to supply VCU Medical Center for one hour.
Samuel B. Parker gives an update on the water boil advisory in Richmond.
House Speaker Don Scott, D-Portsmouth, expects a "boring session" of the General Assembly to begin on Wednesday, but that may be wishful thinking.
County Manager John Vithoulkas: "I want to personally apologize, because I am the county manager, and the mantra is that accountability stops with leadership."
County Manager John Budesky said all addresses east of Interstate 95 should conserve water if it is available to them. A boil water advisory is in effect for those residences.
Lawmakers will meet briefly on Wednesday, the first day of the 46-day General Assembly session, then will adjourn until Monday morning, when Gov. Glenn Youngkin will deliver his State of the Commonwealth address.
Here's what residents should do next after a weather-related power failure resulted in the water level in the Richmond reservoir system to run low on Monday, triggered a boil water alert.
Richmond Sheriff's Deputies deliver water to Midtown Green, one of the city's water distribution sites, on Jan. 7, 2025.
The city of Richmond is partnering with the sheriff's office and the American Red Cross to distribute bottled water in "high priority areas — including homeless services providers, public housing, and residences that house older adults."
Mayor Danny Avula on Tuesday morning discusses the efforts of crews to repair Richmond’s water treatment plant.
The cascading series of events began early Monday morning, when a power outage brought on by snow and ice caused Richmond’s water treatment plant to flood, taking the system offline.
Officials on Monday afternoon issued a boil advisory and "strongly encourage(d)" Richmond residents to "limit water usage" after a power outage impacted the city's water utilities, leading to widespread outages.
Officials have announced bill and tax payment deadline extensions for residents and business owners in the wake of the city's six-day water crisis.
As restaurants in the Richmond area reopened through the weekend and into this week, owners are tallying up what they lost last week due to the shutdown.
Framed by sharp criticism of Richmond for last week’s water crisis, Senate Republicans want to require a director of water utilities to have a professional qualification, most likely an engineering degree.
A pump at Richmond's James River water treatment plant stopped working overnight, the city said Tuesday, a week after a six-day water outage c…
"There probably are other skills that have emerged as what we need in terms of oversight at the water treatment plant," the mayor said.
Hanover wanted to become less reliant on other localities to meet its water demands. One of its plans was ultimately deemed to expensive, while another was fought off by county residents.
Records show officials in 2017 declined two bids from contractors who offered to upgrade the water treatment plant’s switchgear — the component that failed during a power outage on Jan. 6.
