In Jackson, a majority Black city, water troubles have been exacerbated by decades of underinvestment, mismanagement and an exodus of residents to the suburbs, which leads to less money flowing to utilities.
“I’m taking my kids to friends’ and family members’ houses to bathe them,” said Brittany Smith, a waitress who said her water was brown when she went to shower this week. “I’m not keen to washing my dishes in it, either.”
The fragility of the city’s water system has been a problem in Jackson for decades. But the recent flood introduced a complication the city had never wrestled with before, as pumps were overwhelmed by the surge of water.
– Christopher Flavelle, New York Times, September 1, 2022