Water is trickling back in Richmond, boil advisory still in effect

• Crews were working on installing two bypass pumps, which would help increase water pressure for most of the city.
• 42 million gallons of water were flowing at the facility by 6am Wednesday, up from 9 million gallons at 9pm Tuesday night.
• Around 12:30pm Tuesday, the city said water had been restored. It wasn't.

The big picture: Richmonders have been without running water for over 24 hours after the winter storm caused a power outage in the city's Byrd Park treatment facility early Monday.

• The issue has affected hospital operations, could further delay Richmond Public Schools from opening (they closed Wednesday, too), and forced restaurants and businesses to shut down.
• Some residents told Axios that the loss of water is now impacting their heat during a week where temperatures will stay close to freezing.
• It's also led the General Assembly, whose building's water is knocked out, to essentially put off session until Monday. They were scheduled to start Wednesday.

Zoom in: Richmond restoring water production earlier Tuesday didn't mean residents immediately saw water coming out of their faucets.

• "Water pressure will take at least several hours to build up before it can be distributed through the network," per a previous city statement.
• Merriam-Webster defines "several" as "more than two but fewer than many." By Tuesday night, it had definitely been many.

Between the lines: The boil water advisory, first announced around 4:30pm Monday, remains in effect.

• The longer it takes to get water pressure back, the longer Richmonders will have to boil their water.
• That's because once service is restored, the Virginia Department of Health has to do its first check for bacteria in the water.
• There will be a follow-up sample 16 hours after that, and if both are negative, officials will lift the advisory.

Reality check: If the cautious timeline stands, the advisory may not be lifted until late Wednesday at the earliest.

• A leaked email to the Richmond Times-Dispatch suggested water might not be drinkable until Thursday.

Catch up quick: In a Tuesday morning presser, Mayor Avula described a series of setbacks overnight that bucked the chances of water being back by 10pm Monday night as initially expected.

• They included water pumps finally starting and then a fuse blowing out, regressing any progress made.
• There wasn't "actual continued functioning" of a pump filling the water tanks until Tuesday morning, Avula said.
• The outage led to flooding where electronic equipment was sitting in water, Avula told reporters, adding "The plant has sustained a lot of water damage."

Between the lines: The Fan, Museum District, Northside and East End have largely had no running water or low pressure since Monday afternoon. Most residents were finding out via Reddit or texts from friends.

• Yet residents in Shockoe Bottom and parts of South Richmond posted on social media Tuesday that they still had full water use.

Meanwhile, parts of Henrico — especially Sandston, White Oak, Varina and Fairfield — were also without water or experiencing low water pressure Tuesday morning, county officials said, prompting a state of emergency.

• Henrico officials said yesterday's "quick rerouting of water services" from the city, plus a water main break, caused the issue. They're working to restore service by Tuesday afternoon.

Where to get bottled water

City officials said Tuesday morning they were working with the Richmond Sheriff's Office and the Red Cross to distribute bottled water to "high priority areas," including senior centers and homeless shelters.

For everyone else, bottled water distribution sites will be open Wednesday from 10:30am-2pm at:

• Broad Rock Library (4820 Old Warwick Road)
• West End Library (5420 Patterson Ave.)
• Hickory Hill Community Center (3000 Belt Boulevard)
• Bellemeade Community Center (1800 Lynhaven Ave.)
• Midtown Green (2401 W. Leigh St.)
• Pine Camp Community Center (4901 Old Brook Road)
• Randolph Community Center (1415 Grayland Ave.)
• Westover Hills Community Center (1301 Jahnke Road)
• East End District Initiative (701 N. 25th St.)
• Southside Plaza (4100 Hull Street Road)

Yes, but: Some of the centers didn't have water to hand out more than an hour after they were supposed to open at 9:30am on Tuesday, according to social media reports.

How it works: Upon arriving at a center, there will be a sign-in sheet for your name, address and how many people are in your household.

• Three liters of water are allotted per person.

This story has been updated with new developments.

Go deeper:

• Richmond's under a boil water advisory, and some residents don't have water at all
• Henrico declares state of emergency amid water issues stemming from Richmond