The Washington times., 1923-06-25
DEFENDS WATER
SYSTEM IN
SUBURBS !.
T. Howard Duckett Replies to
Attacks for Failure OF
Supply Last Week.

Rushing to the fore to defend the
Washington Suburban SANITARY
Commission, of which he is cnflr'
man, from the attacks that nave
been leveled upon it for its fall-
ure to promptly repair breaks IN
the water system that feeds CneNy
Chase and other District suburbs,
r. Howard Duckett issued a state
ment Saturday asserting that the
commission had done everything IN
IT'S power to promptly restore the
water supply.
His statement follows:
att seems hardly possible that
men at all familiar with pucllc
works could believe that any part
of a water distribution system iS
made up of terra Gotta pipe. We
have not a foot Of this kind OF
nine in the Maryland system from
any of the supply stations to any
point of delivery OF water.
1.-THE whole distribution system
both atsthe Hyattsville and Takoma
Park plants is cast iron pipe tested
to Withstand in every instance at
least 100 pounds greater pressure
than it could possibly be suoJecteo
to in the ground.
whole system is the intake lines
which bring the water from the
source Of supply to the filter plant
and pumping station This water
comes by gravity. without pressure,
in the case of Takorna Park. from
the Sligo Creek above Blair road
down to point about 1000 feet
from the filter plant.
''Just before it reaches the filter
plant the pipe bends up to carry
the water on the filter beds and
for this distance there Is a slight
pressure. and it was at this point
that the joints of the terra Gotta
pipe blew out Wednesday morning.
Immediately as many men as
could possibly be employed within
the given space were put to work
and this pipe replaced with cast
iron pipe.
THE replacement was completed
by three o'clock Friday morning
and Immediately all Of the filter
beds and pumps put into operation
and for several hours we were op-l
Grating at the rate of over mil.
lion gallons per day as against the
highest consumption to date Of 700.-
900 gallons.
"In the meantime. a low lift
pump had been installed at the
filter plant taking the water directly
from the creek up to the filter beds
and which was sufficient to supply
Takoma Park and Silver Spring
and would have been very helpful
in Chevy Chase, If unfortunately
the cast iron main, from Kensing-
ton to Chevy Chase had not blown
q joint early Thursday morning.
This joint, however. was repaired
and water passing through the pipes
by four o'clock Thursday morning.
THE Chevy Chase pumps in the
meantime having been put in opera
ton, supplied a reasonable quantity
Of water in all places except the
higher levels. Because of the ire
mendous drain on the system, we
could not recover pressure as rap
idly as we had hoped and on Fri.
day afternoon with the help ana
consent of Mr.. Garland, of the Dis
trict of Columbia Water Depart.
nent, we made a connection to the
Districts system at Chevy Chase
and picked up about a pound per
hour of pressure, and Saturday
morning by 8 o'clock, the pressure
at Chevy Chase pump was fifty
pounds, meaning that the Chevy
Chase standpipe was two-thirds Lui.
of water, affording an ample supply
for the whole territory.
Both the intake line at Takoma
Park and the cast iron pipe supply
line from Takoma Park through
Kensington to Chevy Chase have
been in use for over a year and
this is the first accident to either
and it was very unfortunate that
both should have occurred within
approximately twenty-four hours
and in the midst Of the hottest
spell of weather that Washington
has had for some time.
Il know that Mr. Morse, our
chief engineer and several of his
assistants were on the job all Thurs
day night and the Commission feels
certain that any fair investigation
of the situation would show that
the difficulties encountered were
not to be reasonably anticipated
and that every effort possible was
made to remedy the condition as
speedily as possible