Ephrata's Well 3 returns to service today after water quality tests pass

UPDATE: The city of Ephrata announced that the well is back online and the water quality tests showed that the water could be consumed. Water use restrictions have been lifted as a result.

EPHRATA – The City of Ephrata’s Well 3 should be back up and running today, as long as the bacteria test results return from the lab negative, according to Public Works Director Rob Harris.  

“If water quality and purity and all the required standards, Well Three will be returned into service,” Harris said. 

On June 25, it was discovered that a major mechanical failure occurred in Well 3. After a thorough inspection it was discovered that damaged bearings, located around 130 feet below the ground, caused the supply line failure. The next day, while inspecting the pump, additional damage was discovered on the pump. The city fully removed the pump for repairs.  

Ephrata Mayor Bruce Reim called for a state of emergency, allowing the city to bypass standard bidding procedures and fix the well in a timelier fashion. The Ephrata City Council will vote on the state of emergency at Thursday night's meeting.  

“The sudden failure of Well Three is an unforeseen circumstance beyond the City's control, creating an emergency condition for the City's citizens. Said failure presents a real, immediate threat to the health, safety, and welfare of the City of Ephrata,” reads the resolution proposed to the council.  

The resolution, if passed, will allow the city staff to proceed with the required repairs. If not accepted, the repairs will be halted and three will remain out of service.  

The parts needed to repair the damaged bearings were supposed to arrive Friday, according to Harris. However, they were then delayed to Monday and never arrived. 

“We ended up having to get the parts from a different route,” Harris said. “It was a different manufacturer that we were able to get those parts from on Monday, after the delays from the other company.”  

However, over the weekend, the pump was still able to be fixed.  

“It went really well,” Harris said. “The contractor, because we didn’t have the parts on Friday to put (the pump) in, they were able to take their time over the weekend and do what they needed to do. They had it completely ready to go by Sunday afternoon. Then they showed up here on Monday morning with it on the truck.” 

Then Monday morning, crews were able to reset the pump and complete the repair process by around 10 p.m. that night.  

“We ran it just a little bit on Monday night, moved the chlorine around and made sure that everything inside of that system was coated good with chlorine and water, and let her sit for the 24 hours Tuesday,” Harris said.  

Bacteria and other tests were conducted Tuesday morning and driven by a city employee to Pasco to be examined. 

“As long as we have a negative test, the well will be back on,” Harris said.  

    Ephrata Public Works Director Rob Harris