Recent problems can teach communities about preparing for the unexpected
Healthy communities depend on reliable water, yet aging infrastructure, extreme weather, cybersecurity threats, and other risks can interrupt services with little warning. Several high-profile incidents across the United States show how severely these disruptions can affect communities and offer valuable lessons for utilities preparing for the unexpected.
In This Article
Water System Resilience Has Become a National Conversation
Water utilities are operating under far more pressure than they were designed to handle. Many are grappling with aging infrastructure prone to equipment failures, while growing populations strain already overstretched systems. Extreme weather and climate-related events, including hurricanes, droughts, and flooding, are taking a toll.
At the same time, utilities face evolving regulatory requirements and staffing challenges driven by workforce shortages across the industry. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), roughly one-third of the water sector workforce will reach retirement age within the next 10 years. And while digital technology can simplify operations and reduce the need for on-site monitoring, it can also expose systems to cybersecurity risks.
Case Study 1: Jackson, Mississippi (Infrastructure and Deferred Investment)
In August 2022, heavy rain caused the Pearl River to rise and affected Jackson’s already vulnerable water system. Approximately 150,000 residents were left without reliable access to drinkable water, and the city remained under a boil-water notice for 40 days. EPA documented longstanding challenges with the city’s water system, including infrastructure repairs, staffing shortages, and operations and maintenance issues.
The lesson: Infrastructure that operates under strain for years is far less resilient when an unexpected event occurs. Addressing known weaknesses before they become emergencies can make a significant difference.
Case Study 2: Oldsmar, Florida (Cybersecurity)
In February 2021, an unauthorized user remotely accessed the computer system at a water treatment facility in Oldsmar, Florida. The intruder attempted to alter the sodium hydroxide setting from approximately 100 parts per million (ppm) to 11,100 ppm, a level that could have posed a serious risk. A plant operator noticed the unauthorized activity and immediately reversed the change. Other safeguards, including system alarms, also would have helped prevent the altered water from reaching customers.
The lesson: Technology can make water treatment more efficient and easier to monitor, but it also creates new responsibilities. Cybersecurity, access controls, monitoring, and operator awareness all form part of modern water-system resilience.
Case Study 3: Texas Winter Storm Uri (Extreme Weather)
When Winter Storm Uri slammed into Texas in 2021, it exposed just how vulnerable water systems are to extreme weather. Record-low temperatures, ice, snow, frozen infrastructure, and widespread power outages disrupted water and wastewater services across Texas. Many drinking water systems couldn’t operate normally, and others operated under restrictions, often with boil-water advisories.
The lesson: Resilience means preparing for conditions that might exceed those a system was originally designed to withstand. Backup power, winterization, redundancy, and emergency response plans can help utilities maintain service when normal assumptions no longer hold.
Case Study 4: American Water (Cybersecurity)
In October 2024, American Water, one of the nation’s largest regulated water and wastewater utilities, reported a cybersecurity incident involving unauthorized activity. The company disconnected certain systems while it investigated and secured its network. American Water reported that its water and wastewater operations were not negatively affected and confirmed that water quality was normal.
Unlike Oldsmar, this incident did not directly affect treatment operations. Instead, it illustrates another side of resilience: containing a disruption before it affects essential services.
The lesson: A cyber incident does not have to disrupt water service. Safeguards and contingency plans can help utilities isolate affected systems while maintaining essential operations.
| Disruption | What Happened | Resilience Lesson |
|---|---|---|
| Loss of reliable water service — Jackson, MS | Flooding compounded longstanding infrastructure, staffing, and operational challenges | Addressing known vulnerabilities before an emergency can improve resilience |
| Treatment-system cyber intrusion — Oldsmar, FL | An operator detected and reversed an unauthorized change to treatment settings | Trained operators, safeguards, and monitoring matter |
| Widespread water outages — Winter Storm Uri, TX | Extreme cold and power outages disrupted water systems across the state | Backup power, winterization, and redundancy can help maintain service |
| Cyber incident — American Water | Certain systems were taken offline while water and wastewater operations continued | Contingency planning can help keep a cyber incident from becoming a service disruption |
Building Resilience Before an Emergency
Resilience starts with understanding the condition and capacity of existing assets. Regular assessments and preventive maintenance can identify aging equipment and potential points of failure, while backup power, monitoring, additional treatment capacity, alternative water sources, and mutual aid agreements can give utilities more options when normal operations are disrupted.
Flexible Infrastructure Can Reduce Risk
Resilience does not always require replacing or dramatically expanding an entire centralized system. Decentralized treatment, prefabricated treatment systems, phased capacity additions, and alternative water supplies can create additional options when existing infrastructure is strained, needs to be taken offline, or cannot keep pace with changing demand.
Seven Seas’ Water-as-a-Service® delivery model combines treatment infrastructure with experienced operations and long-term support. For communities facing capacity constraints, limited staffing, or the need for an alternative water supply, this approach can provide additional treatment capacity without requiring the utility to design, finance, build, and operate a major project on its own.
Questions Every Utility Should Be Asking
Building resilient systems starts with asking the right questions before an emergency exposes vulnerabilities. For elected officials and utility managers, the following questions can help identify gaps, prioritize investment, and build a more adaptable water system.
- What would happen if our primary treatment facility went offline?
Do you have sufficient backup capacity, alternative treatment options, or access to another water source? Understanding your options before a failure occurs can reduce pressure during an emergency. - Where are our greatest infrastructure vulnerabilities?
Regular assessments can identify aging equipment, single points of failure, and components approaching the end of their useful life. This information can help utilities prioritize maintenance and capital investment where it can have the greatest impact. - Do we have enough trained operators?
A resilient system depends on people as much as equipment. Utilities must consider whether they have enough qualified workers to maintain operations during an emergency, as well as plans for training, succession, and additional support when staffing is stretched. - Could our system adapt to rapid population growth?
Infrastructure designed around today’s demand might not have enough capacity to accommodate tomorrow’s population. Flexible or phased treatment capacity can give communities more options when demand changes, allowing infrastructure investment to keep pace with growth.
Asking these questions does not mean a community can eliminate every risk. It helps identify where vulnerabilities exist and where investment can give the utility more options.
Resilience Is Built Before the Crisis
These disruptions show that communities that identify vulnerabilities and invest in preparedness are better positioned to maintain safe, reliable water when the unexpected happens.
Contact Seven Seas for help strengthening water security with flexible infrastructure, experienced operations, and solutions designed to adapt under changing conditions.
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