Atlanta mayor pledges to aid businesses harmed by water outages as he looks to upgrade system

ATLANTA (AP) — Atlanta’s mayor on Wednesday pledged support of a plan to spend $5 million to reimbursing businesses for losses during water outages in the city since Friday, as he promised an assessment of the city’s infrastructure and to deploy monitors to detect leaking pipes.

Mayor Andre Dickens made the announcements a day after workers finished repairs on a ruptured water main. Officials said they had restored water flow and normal pressure to customers after troubles began Friday. Downtown Atlanta and nearby neighborhoods will remain under an order to boil water before drinking until sampling shows the water is safe, a period likely to last until Thursday.

“We know this disruption wasn’t easy for you and we appreciate your patience and your understanding throughout this journey that we’ve been on,” Dickens said. “We are happy to be on the other side of it.”

Atlanta’s water outages are the latest failures as cities across the country shore up faltering infrastructure. A 2022 crisis in Jackson, Mississippi, which has a long-troubled water system, left many residents without safe running water for weeks. Other cities including Flint, Michigan, have also struggled to supply residents with safe drinking water.

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