Pinellas County hopes water will be restored to the barrier islands by the end of the week

Pinellas County working to restore utilities

Kailey Tracy reports

TREASURE ISLAND, Fla. - Neighbors who once hung out on Sunshine Lane in Treasure Island are now cooling off at the city’s comfort station after Hurricane Helene.

"I don't know if I'm in high spirits," resident Marvin Taylor said. "I'm just surviving. There's nothing I can do if I get down. I can't get down. I’ve been through some real hurricane scares, but this is real. This is real life."

Taylor had four feet of water in his home. He and his neighbors are some of about 7,500 residents on the barrier islands in Pinellas County without running water.

"It’s impossible. It’s impossible not to have running water. We take it for granted," Taylor said.

Pinellas County Utilities Director Jeremy Waugh said he’s hoping water is restored to the barrier islands by the end of this week.

Residents and businesses south of John’s Pass are affected and are under a boil water advisory. Some water has been restored to the beaches, but officials said it’s not yet safe to drink.

They’re testing the water quality. Waugh said they’re required to do two days of testing and meet local, state and federal standards before giving the all clear. Wednesday was the first day of testing.

READ: Hurricane Helene death toll rises to 12 in Pinellas County

Waugh said their equipment above ground was knocked over by debris and sand that washed up during the storm. That caused damage to service lines, hundreds of pipes and caused several pipes to leak.

On top of that, the Gulf Beach Water Booster station was also damaged.

"It's certainly not one system that you flip the switch on," Waugh said. "Our Pinellas County and the barrier islands flow, the water flows from north to south. So, as we have breaks in the middle, obviously that impacts everyone south of that. So, we've been slowly working on all the barrier islands, but unfortunately, as we lost pressure, and we lost the Gulf Beach Booster Station during the event, we had to cut service, water service, to the southern barrier islands from John's Pass down to Tierra Verde."

Several of the damaged pipes are also buried in sand and require excavation to find and repair, Waugh said.

MORE: St. Petersburg launches fund to help residents and businesses recover from Hurricane Helene: 'We are St. Pete'

"This is a unique event for us in Pinellas County Utilities. The difficulty with the pipes being buried in sand is we don't always know where the valves are. We know on maps, and we know through historical workers where the valves are, but it's like a desert," Waugh said.

"Now you're going to try and dig a hole. Imagine digging a hole in two or three feet of sand where you think the valve is, and the valve is two feet in one direction, the other direction. Your hole missed the valve. So, there's incredible difficulty with that," he said.

Private water lines have been damaged too, according to Waugh.

"We did notice a lot of homes and businesses where the water the break was inside or past the meter, so on the customers’ side of the meter, or private side … we put door hangers with text messages. We've also noted those addresses for our accounts," Waugh said. "There will be a process for them to reestablish their water service. We're going to publish out for communication the process for customers that have been impacted by the storm, not just on the islands, but anywhere. Work with us. We'll work with you as a utility. We’ll waive reconnection fees, inspection fees, those kind of things, but contact us."

PREVIOUS: Pinellas County on Hurricane Helene recovery: 'It will take some time'

You can contact Pinellas County at 727-464-4000.

"We do acknowledge that some of this, some of these houses are very severely impacted, and you're not even worried about water yet. You're trying to figure out how you're going to get all the drywall and flooring and carpeting out. We'll work with you over a long period of time here, you know, 18 months or so. If you need to do your full house, and then you're ready to get your water turned back on, please call us," he said.

More than 150 crews from across the state are working around the clock to restore the water for about 7,500 customers. Waugh credited the help Pinellas is receiving from across Florida.

Officials also reiterated county leaders’ message to stay off the barrier islands if you don’t need to be here.

READ: Pinellas County debris removal plans after Hurricane Helene

"It is an extreme problem for us just navigating … A lot of times our meters and our valves are in people's yards or in the right of way there and roadways. And just the more general traffic there is, the harder it is for us to do our work, not just from a logistics standpoint, but we have to have proper maintenance of traffic, set out cones and signs and billboards, notice signs, letting people know that we're working in this area," Waugh said.

Local leaders have set up comfort stations that include showers, bathrooms and a spot to do laundry.

"It’s hard," Josh Armogum, a Treasure Island resident, said. "People need water. You know, thankfully, people were able to set up trailers over here."

While residents say they’re grateful for the comfort stations, they can’t wait to shower in their own homes.

MORE: Coastal Bay Area residents worry they could lose homes if power isn't restored soon

"It’ll be like hitting the lottery," resident Travis Lucas said. "I can’t wait."

Some spots of the barrier islands also don’t have power. According to Duke Energy, they have to rebuild parts of the electric grid. Crews are hoping to restore power to the barrier islands by 11:59 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 5. Most will get power back by 11:59 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 4.

According to Duke, customers who currently can’t receive power due to damage to the property’s meter base, breaker panel or customer-owned electrical wiring should contact their local municipalities for guidance. Inspections may be required after repairs are complete.

Officials recommend having a professional inspect your electrical system if your home flooded above the power outlets.

WATCH FOX 13 NEWS:

STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA: