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To: William H Huebl who wrote (2775)	8/29/2002 9:39:05 AM
From: Ish	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 34894

Towns are still dry, despite a little rain Piedmont cities keep restrictions JOE DEPRIEST Staff Writer Storms that flooded parts of eastern North Carolina on Monday brought little relief to Piedmont towns running out of drinking water because of drought. Officials in Shelby, Cleveland County, Bessemer City, Cherryville and Statesville said the spotty showers helped by providing a few days' water supply, but much more rain is needed over a longer period to make any real difference. Meanwhile, they have no plans to relax mandatory water restrictions. "It seems like we've got an umbrella over us up here," said Butch Smith, director of the Cleveland County Sanitary District, which has 50,000 customers in rural areas north of Shelby. "We've gotten a little rain, but all it's done is buy us time. The drought isn't over. September and October are our driest months." In Statesville, the 0.2-inch rainfall helped little because, while the city needs to cut consumption to 2 million gallons a day, average daily consumption remains at about 2.6 million. Meanwhile, the city temporarily cut off its water pumps from the South Yadkin River this week because heavy rains north of the city brought extremely muddy water into the system. Cutting off the pumps kept the muddy water out of the city's reservoir and treatment plant. Muddy water is harder, and sometimes impossible, to treat, city officials said. Rain last week perked up the almost-dry First Broad River, helping both the sanitary district and the city of Shelby. The flow was enough to allow the city to start tapping into its main water source again after 16 days of having to buy water from Kings Mountain. Officials said rain within the First Broad's basin, which reaches into Rutherford and McDowell counties, has strengthened the flow, but they expected it to drop again when hot weather creeps back. On Aug. 16, Shelby stopped buying up to 2 million gallons of water daily from Kings Mountain, saving up to $3,700 a day. The water comes from a temporary hookup at Moss Lake, Kings Mountain's reservoir. Shelby also has been paying up to $850 a day for water from a private lake. The city of 20,000 is about 45 miles west of Charlotte on U.S. 74. Shelby officials said mandatory restrictions that went into effect Aug. 1 cut water usage in half to an average of 3.5 million gallons per day. Shelby City Finance Director Ted Phillips said the drought could cost the city nearly $2 million -- money not in Shelby's $63 million budget. Officials hope Gov. Mike Easley will declare a state of emergency to help pay some of the costs. Bessemer City in western Gaston County is spending about $1,400 a day to buy 750,000 gallons of water from neighboring Kings Mountain. City Manager Joe Albright said the city had already budgeted nearly $70,000 to buy six weeks of water -- an action that usually takes place during the dry months of October and November. Albright said that money should run out within a few weeks. Cherryville, in northwest Gaston County, is still getting 350,000 gallons of water per day at $1.25 per 1,000 gallons -- $4,375 a day -- through an emergency hookup with Lincoln County. Interim Cherryville City Manager David Lowe said the city doesn't pump continuously. And, he said, three new wells will provide additional water to the city soon. Ryan Bowles, associate state climatologist, said scattered showers will continue this week, but he didn't expect the long-term soaking rain that is needed. -- STAFF WRITER KATHRYN WELLIN CONTRIBUTED TO THIS ARTICLE. -- JOE DEPRIEST: (704) 868-7745; charlotte.com