Middle Georgia Counties Share H2o

About a dozen residents on Hitchcock Road in Jones County are mixing bleach with their contaminated water to kill germs.

County Administrator Mike Underwood says if those residents want clean water, at least ten families have to dish out a $1300 deposit fee.

“Right now we don’t have ten so I don’t know, but they said it’s a one time deal and if it doesn’t happen by October then it’s going to be off the table,” said Louise Holcomb of Jones County.

Holcomb wants clean water, so she’s already cut a check. Now she’s hoping nine more families will chip in towards the plan.

If enough households sign up, the plan will pipe water from Baldwin to Jones County. For now, Halcomb stocks up on drinking water for cooking and mixes bleach with water for cleaning and bathing.

“It’s very inconvenient, you have to go way down to Gordon, hall your water up here and in the summer months I spend about $30 a month.”

Being on a fixed income makes that tough, but that’s not even the worst part.

“We’ve been fighting for this water since 2004 and that’s what really hurts – nobody cares and we don’t know what else we can do.”

Each family’s deposit fee will be refunded if the goal of ten households isn’t met, but Halcomb hopes that’s not the case. All she wants is cold, clean H2o.

According to Underwood, both Baldwin and Jones counties have a verbal agreement to work together to supply water. A written-final agreement is pending on whether enough households pay the deposit by October 1st.