Rayne officials say brown colored water is safe to drink and was expected to happen

RAYNE, La., (KLFY) - Some residents in a small town are frustrated that they're having to deal with brown-colored water.

A resident of Rayne took to Facebook, expressing her frustration and shared images of brown water flowing from faucets. She also shared a video of her now discolored blanket she had washed in the water.

Though residents are frustrated, the city officials said it's a small hiccup in a much larger process and $2.6 million project of fixing the city's 60-year-old water system.

"We all knew going into it there were going to be some clarity issues, but it's not a safety issue, it's a clarity issue," City Engineer Brett Bayard said.

The Mayor of Rayne Charles Robichaux said the residents were notified before in advance by all options available at the town's disposal.

These photos show the state of the previous decades old water clarifying system the city was using.

But why is the water brown? Officials say that the water isn't being clarified but is still being treated with the normal chemicals. They say because the process is skipping the clarification and the chlorine is being added, it's causing oxidation to occur, which creates the brown tinted water color residents are experiencing.

"Right now we don't have the clarification we would have, but we do have all of the safety features like the chlorine reduction and everything else," Bayard said.

The clarification system should have been finished, however, there have been several delays caused by the rain.

"It's a long process and we still have a few weeks before we put the clarifier online," Bayard said.

Since the clarifier is currently down, some residents may also see small sediment deposits when they run the water as well.

Robichaux said the system upgrades are good for the city as it will help reduce the amount of money the city is having to spend. A generator will also be installed, allowing residents to receive water even if the power is out.