Boil order including Hawthorn Mall, Mellody Farm in Vernon Hills going into Thursday
More than 1,300 homes and businesses in the Vernon Hills and Mettawa areas north of Route 60 remain under a boil order that will continue until at least Thursday morning.
The affected areas in Vernon Hills include two major shopping areas - Hawthorn Mall and Mellody Farm.
Sections of the Vernon Hills water system lost pressure and/or service after a mechanical failure at a reservoir for about an hour Tuesday. Service was restored, but pressure in the New Century Town, Forest Haven and Mettawa areas fell below the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency's acceptable level and a boil order was issued.
Water is being tested for quality and the boil order will be in effect until at least Thursday morning, according to the Lake County Public Works Department.
An issue with the department's robocall system meant not all customers were alerted Tuesday night and the department was continuing to notify impacted customers. The system was running slowly Wednesday afternoon and efforts to reach some homeowners included going door-to-door.
A list of affected homes and businesses is available at https://www.lakecountyil.gov/, and an interactive map of the affected areas is at https://lakecountyil.maps.arcgis.com/.
The boil order affects two roughly areas. The first stretches north and west from Route 60 and Milwaukee Ave. (Route 21). The other area is north and west of Route 60 between St. Mary's Road and I-94.
Affected residents should use bottled water for drinking, cooking, washing fresh fruits and vegetables, hand-washing and tooth brushing. Tap water can be used for personal hygiene, laundry and household cleaning.
If bottled water isn't available, tap water should be boiled three minutes and allowed to cool before being used.
Additional guidelines are on the county's health department website.
Anyone with questions or concerns should call (847) 377-7500 or email publicworks@lakecountyil.gov.