WYTHEVILLE, Va. – Sunday afternoon, a ruptured waterline near the entrance to Speedco on E. Lee Hwy. (US Route 11) in Fort Chiswell was reported.

The waterline rupture was concealed by heavy snow and was not discovered until the 200,000 gallon water tank located atop Fox Mountain had completely drained, leaving customers without service from Exit 80 to 86.

County crews are on the scene, making repairs to the lines, but caution that they fully expect for work to continue throughout the day and that a precautionary boil water notice will be in effect for 24-48 hours following restoration of service.

According to the county’s engineer, all efforts are being made to have the lines operational as fast as possible, but the weather has created some delays in the repair process.

The service outage will only affect county residents connected to the E. Lee Highway waterline. All other waterlines in the county are fully operational.

Earlier today, Wythe County sent out a mass notification to affected customers, via the county’s citizen notification system, alerting residents of the problem in their area.

County residents are encouraged to check the locality’s official Facebook page (Facebook.com/WytheCo) for updates. Customers with additional questions may contact the Wythe County Water Department at 276-223-4501.

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