North Carolina Town Asked to Hold Off Doing Laundry for 5 Days — and Residents Aren't Too Happy

Ashley Boucher

Residents in a North Carolina town are being advised to avoid doing any laundry for nearly a week, and the townspeople aren’t too pleased.

Surf City officials sent out an advisory on October 1, alerting the people of Pender County Island that the Public Works Department would be conducting “directional flush” of hydrants and waterlines in the area from Monday through Friday.

“The purpose of this flush is to remove excess iron from the water lines,” the city said in its advisory on both its website and Facebook.

“Residents may experience discolored water. This excess water posses no heath risk, but residents are discouraged from washing clothes during this time. Water should clear up through normal use. The area affected will be all Pender County Island Residents,” the alert continued.

However, it appears that many residents didn’t become aware of the flush until it was already in effect.

dirty water
dirty water

RELATED: EPA Slammed for Suggesting Weakened Standards to Clean Up Contaminated Drinking Water

“It’s gonna be murder catching up with our families of 5, and extracurricular activities/sports,” one resident commented on the Facebook post announcing the flush.

“Why wasn’t there a call out to those that would be affected?!? I don’t get on Facebook often enough to get these alerts,” another resident commented, expressing frustration that she had already done laundry during the affected period.

RELATED VIDEO: Flooding in Western Michigan Causes College Football Stadium to Look Like a Swimming Pool

While the water in this situation is still safe, clean water has become a hot button issue for North Carolina voters in the past few years, especially after Hurricane Florence hit the state last year.

In May, the Environmental Working Group reported at least 22 locations across North Carolina that were exposed to “high levels of contaminated drinking water,” according to Charlotte Stories.

The report found PFAS chemicals in the water, which “have been linked to weakened childhood immunity, thyroid disease, cancer, and other health problems,” the outlet said.