GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — After a water main break on Sunday the City of Grand Rapids put a boil water advisory in place. Thousands of residents were impacted and many Grand Rapids businesses had to close out of concern for safety. Grand Rapids Public Schools (GRPS) made the decision to close down all schools on Tuesday, even those not in the area affected by the water main break.
Now, GRPS has announced they plan to reopen the schools Wednesday since the city's first round of water testing found no harmful contaminants present.
The city announced the results Tuesday afternoon. They said they will do another round of testing on Wednesday morning to confirm the water is safe. Until they get that confirmation on Wednesday the boil water advisory will remain in place.
GRPS said the schools in the affected area will take certain precautions to ensure the return to classes will be safe.
Bottled water and hand sanitizer will be available and the GRPS Nutrition Services facility, which is located in the advisory zone, will serve breakfasts and lunches that do not require the use of water. They also said that if any water is used in food preparation it will be boiled in advance. Drinking fountains at the affected schools will be off limits.
The GRPS Facilities and Operations team said they have been flushing the water system at each of the affected schools. They plan on doing additional flushing as needed following additional tests and recommendations from city leaders and county health officials.
GRPS said that even when the city gives the all clear, schools plan on having bottled water available for at least the remainder of the week.
Any families with questions or concerns can contact the principal at their child's school.
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