One month has passed since Jackson’s water crisis ended, leaving tens of thousands of residents across the city without water for over two weeks in September.
Now, the Unified Command of the Jackson Water Crisis incident has issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) for a 12-month emergency procurement contract for staffing for operations, maintenance, and management at the capital city’s water treatment facilities. These locations include the O.B. Curtis Water Treatment Facility, J.H. Fewell Water Treatment Facility, tanks, and well facilities of Jackson.
According to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA), the search for a contract comes as several emergency contracts and declarations are set to end soon. The current Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) contracts end on October 20 and the Emergency Measures declaration ends on November 29.
“MEMA is acting as the coordinating agency for the procurement of this contract. Staffing has been a critical issue at these facilities, and we are ready to move to the next phase of stabilizing Jackson’s water services. Our top priority is life safety,” says MEMA Executive Director Stephen McCraney.
Other reasons for the emergency contract include providing long-term solutions to sustain the state’s work at the named facilities.
MEMA reports only $191K spent to put Jackson’s water treatment plant back online
