The water supply for Lynnville was tampered with, causing a water shortage, according to a Facebook post from the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office.
Around 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 25, the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office was notified that someone had tampered with the equipment controlling the availability of water to Lynnville. Despite this, the city stated that the condition of the water was not affected and was safe to consume.
During this time, Hy-Vee and Safeguard Iowa supplied bottled water that was distributed by Jasper County’s Emergency Department and the sheriff’s office. Kellogg Fire Department, Searsboro Fire Department and Sully Fire Department were all placed on emergency standby for any structure fires in the city.
Jasper County officials are conducting an investigation into who tampered with the water.
Lynville is a town of about 400 people on the North Skunk River.
Central Iowa water ban still in effect
This isn’t the first issue with water in central Iowa. On June 12, Central Iowa Water Works banned over 600,000 residents in the Des Moines metro area from watering their lawns due to health-endangering nitrates in the water from the Racoon and Des Moines rivers.
The recent heavy rainfall caused nitrate levels in the water to drop, however, the first-ever lawn watering ban is still in effect for central Iowans as of Wednesday, June 25. Central Iowa Water Works Executive Director Tami Madsen said the facility is doing everything possible to keep drinking water safe for residents.
Though Altoona isn’t part of CIWW, it also has asked its residents to voluntarily cut back on lawn watering due to heat.
Chris Meglio is a reporter for the Register. Reach him at cmeglio@gannett.com or on X @chris_meglio.
This story was updated to add a video.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Rural Iowa town sees water shortage after its water supply was tampered with
Reporting by Chris Meglio, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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