Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-07-31
By Harry Lever
Star Staff Correspondent

Star Staff Correspondent
ELLIcoTT CITY. Md, July
31.-Water trickled through the
mains here again today after a
two-hour supply failure that left
hundreds Of homes without a
drop.
Pressure was so low in the
towns dwindling reservoir yes
terday that the main business
section, high on a hilltop. was
completely dry.
Shocked by what happened,
townspeople hustled to carry
water from farm wells for neces-
sites. Trucks hauled loads of
milk cans filled with water into
town.
Water in Homes Today.
Chester Litchfield. a superin-
tendent for the Maryland Water
works Co., which operates the
Ellicott City supply system, de-
c1ared that all homes had water
today. He said the supply was
able to replenish itself tempo
rarily,. and work was pushed on
reopening an old well to help
prevent a recurrence of the water
failure.
The baby son of Mrs. Duwane
Sahdlin was one who had moth
ing to worry about. The mother
of Denny Lee, 4 months old
would make sure he had enough
water to go with his baby pap
and for a good washing, even in
yesterdays 00-degree heat.
Logging gallons of it from a
woodland spring, she kept a
sterilizer fullsof the liquid every
body takes for granted until a
critical shortage develops, as 1t
has today in this town of some
1000 persons.
The worst in the towns 100
year history. the shortage caught
hundreds Of persons UMPIRE
pared.
The shortage doesn't register
a stark picture of people with
their tongues hanging out in
thirst. There is always soda
pop. It hovers as a sinister
threat in the background fol-
the residents of Ellicott City's
low areas, especially around
Main street. For. the estimated
1000 who live in the billy Sec
tons it already is an actuality
Some people came and 1ooket
at Sucker Branch, a three mil'
long creek, ordinarily fed b.
tributaries until it would over.
flow, its banks.
Creek Bed Becoming Dusty.
That was the main source O
water supply for Ellicott City
But today Sucker Greek is moth
ing but a 20-foot square over
grown muddy puddle UP agains
a small dam. And behind tn,
puddle is an equally muddy creel
bed. rapidly drying to the stat
| of, dust.
Thursday afternoon seems tt
have been zero hour for thu
crisis. It was then that hundred
of taps in the kitchens ant
bathrooms of households in tn,
billy sections of the town wen
so dry people couldn't even hav
| drink of water. It was thel
that the Health Department
Building and the COURTEOUS
went dry.
And it was then that 18 pris
oners in the city Jail found NJ
1 water to drink or to make SOUP
There was no water for sanitar
| facilities. Paradess of bucket
men and milk-can men starte'
operating, the water bein
brought in by county truck
| from outside springs, Last night
they got some water from tn
taps in the jail, but it wa
brackish.
/ For Mrs. Sandlin, who lives Il
,,ratfv Weaver'S court. tina
parade commenced also. Ant
| for Mrs. Alvin Bridener. he
neighbor. And for Mrs. VII
liam Gassaway, a doctors wife
a bit down the road. The can
| are on the porches today.
4 Mrs. Sandlin was using tn
same water to wash dishes 10
more than two meals.
4 The technical answer is
hard one to figure. Here wa
the situation as of last night
when MI. Litcllfield. called hi
wife to say he might not 3
home for three days.
Normally. Ellicott City use
about 14C,000 gallons of waite
q day. The flow had been re
duced to 72.CO0 gallons the othe
day, and it dropped menacingi
less than this at one time. bu
there was q rufIie of Optimism
Yesterday. as it rose for q tim
to 100000 gallons. But stil
nowhere near the vital capacit
, of 200 to 500 gallons q minute
II Mr.. Litchheld said some pan
icky residents who filed bat
, tubs and cans with water Whe
]. they heard rumors OF the dwin