Danbury Mayor Confirms the City’s Drinking Water is Just Fine

Yes, there was an algae bloom in the Margerie Lake Reservoir on a single day in July because of a heatwave and a freakish amount of rain. Yes, water exceeded standards for turbidity, which is also known as "cloudy" water.

I reached out to Danbury Mayor Joe Cavo to ask him about the specifics of the water situation and if it's safe to drink. He told me, "it's all about mother nature," and went on to say,

Usually a situation like what happened that one day in July is predictable, but not this time. It became so

warm and the rain kept coming down. It happened so abruptly, the turbidity of the water quickly rose to 5.8% and that's when we had to take the Margerie Reservoir offline for about 5 1/2 hours.

Whenever the turbidity or cloudiness of the water reaches above 5%, Connecticut officials and its residents need to be officially notified that the Margerie Reservoir will be taken offline and switched to the West Lake Reservoir until the algae bloom can be treated.

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Because the water issue was handled quickly, turbidity levels returned to safe levels and water quality improved within 48 hours. Mayor Cavo also explained that Danbury's health department tests the city water several times a day. As we wrapped up our conversation, the Mayor stated,

“The important thing to know is that nobody’s water was ever harmful or dangerous. The drinking water was fine.”