Thursday March 28th, 2024 2:46PM

Clarkesville mayor urges support of restaurants after closures

CLARKESVILLE – In the wake of a citywide Boil Water Advisory that affected the city for about 48 hours this week, Clarkesville Mayor Barrie Aycock is urging restaurants to prepare now to avoid future closures.

Restaurants throughout the city, from fast food to fine dining were shuttered late Tuesday afternoon and remained so throughout the lunch hours Thursday.

That’s because of a large water main break on Gabrels Drive at noon Tuesday that potentially compromised the quality of water in the city’s system.

“A 10-inch main was found to have ruptured on the end of Gabrels Drive in front of the Cameron Apartments,” Aycock said in a written statement. “The leak was significant enough that the water plant had to temporarily shut down while the leak was isolated.”

Water service to most of the city was restored by 1 p.m., with line repair and service restoration to Gabrels Drive and Cameron Apartments by that night.

“Due to the nature and size of the leak, a Boil Water Advisory had to be put in place for all of Clarkesville,” Aycock’s statement reads. “It is known that water outages were reported throughout the system and there is no way to accurately delineate whose pressure dropped below the required 20 psi and whose did not. When water pressure drops below this level, there is the possibility for contaminants to enter our water system.”

Aycock said the city’s responsibility is to ensure that those affected are aware of the situation and know what to do to ensure they are not at risk.

City officials contacted the Habersham County Health Department and restaurants were instructed on the required procedures.

“We would like to encourage all of our small businesses and restaurant owners to contact the local health department regarding their emergency action plan (EAP),” Aycock’s statement reads. “With the proper documentation in place, many businesses may avoid closures all together.”

Because the city’s restaurants were closed for about 48 hours, Aycock hopes people will support them and their servers to help make up for the lost revenue.

“We urge all of you to show your support for those restaurants that had to close by making a special effort to visit them and top the staff who are especially vulnerable to lost revenue when they can’t work,” Aycock’s statement reads. “Our downtown is fortunate to have so many great choices and places to dine. We want them all to know how much they are appreciated by the City of Clarkesville.”

Aycock said restaurants who want to get an emergency action plan in place before any future events should contact Habersham County Environmental Health Manager Renita Stroupe at (706) 776-7659, ext. 257.

  • Associated Categories: Homepage, Business News, Local/State News
  • Associated Tags: clarkesville, boil water advisory, City of Clarkesville, Mayor Barrie Aycock
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