BELL COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — Dog Ridge Water Supply Corporation has addressed the ongoing water outages affecting Belton residents, attributing the problems to aging infrastructure dating back to the 1960s. Residents report having no water more often than having water, with some going days without service and facing frequent boil water notices with poor water quality described as "brown" and "disgusting."
- Dog Ridge Water Supply Corporation has finally spoken with reporters after initially refusing, addressing ongoing water outages affecting Belton residents
- Residents report having no water more often than having water, with some going days without service and facing frequent boil water notices
- The water company attributes problems to aging infrastructure dating back to the 1960s, saying ground shifts cause line breaks regardless of whether conditions are wet or dry
- Dog Ridge has secured a $2 million loan through the Texas Water Development Board to begin repairs in the Sherwood Shores area
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BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Residents in Belton have been experiencing frequent water outages and boil water notices for days, with some saying they have water less often than not.
"We probably have no water more times than we have water," said one frustrated resident.
After multiple residents shared their concerns about the ongoing water issues, Dog Ridge Water Supply Corporation has finally spoken out about what's causing the problems.
Patrick Morrow, a Dog Ridge customer, says the unpredictability of his family's water service is just the beginning of their troubles.
"Even when we have water, the quality of water is like brown, it's just disgusting," Morrow said.
He's particularly frustrated with how the company communicates with its customers.
"Management as far as communication to the customers is terrible," Morrow said.
When 25 News' Dominique Leh first reached out to Dog Ridge Water Supply Corporation about these ongoing issues, she was told twice that "We don't talk to reporters."
However, shortly after her story aired on Monday, they contacted he to answer questions over the phone.
Mauro Cortez, president of Dog Ridge Water Supply Corporation, who has served on the board since 2021, explained that the main cause of the outages is the aging infrastructure that has been in the ground since the 1960s.
"Well, aging infrastructure is our main problem," Cortez said.
He emphasized that when lines break, it's not due to retaliation from the company.
"It's not anything that any board member does or any employee does. It's just the nature of the system when the ground is way too wet it shifts and it causes breaks when it's too dry it shifts and causes breaks, but it's not anything that is the fault of the board or any employee of Dog Ridge," Cortez said.
According to Cortez, when lines break, their technicians make repairs as quickly as possible. The company currently has a $2 million loan through the Texas Water Development Board to make repairs in the Sherwood Shores area, with hopes to continue installing new infrastructure throughout their system.
"But that takes time, it takes money and the way that we generate our money is through the water sales and the base rate that we charge. And you know it is kind of a two-sided deal there because in order to generate the money we need we have to go up on the base rate but our customers hate when we go up on the base rate," Cortez said.
Cortez stated they don't anticipate raising the base rate to fund improvements and will look for other ways to generate income.
Meanwhile, Morrow believes Dog Ridge should invest in updating the entire system. If the problems persist, he says his family might have to move.
"It's pushing us out of here, it's 2025 you shouldn't be without water for more than two days," Morrow said.
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