UPDATE: 2/23/21 7:27 pm
Marlin’s water services are back in operation and our towers are currently holding water in them. We have seen numerous leaks throughout our city and these areas have either been repaired or had the water shut off to them. If your water was turned off because of a leak, please do not turn your meter on until your leak is repaired. We spoke with TDEM again today and advised them of our current state of affairs with leaks throughout the city. We are hoping to get engineers and a dig crew to assist with leaks in our city infrastructure as well as issues at our water plant. They do not do repairs to individual family homes or businesses. (We did ask) Please pray that Marlin is considered for these resources. Our compressors have been ordered and are scheduled to arrive sometime Friday. They will be professionally installed by a technician when they arrive. Once these are installed, our plant will be in full operation. We will remain under a boil order until cleared by TCEQ.
The water provided by our HEB partner will be distributed beginning at noon Wednesday (02/24) at the HEB parking lot. We need volunteers to meet city personnel at HEB at 11:30 am for distribution. Additional pallets of water is expected to be available for distribution Thursday provided by Convoy of Hope out of Pennsylvania. Thank you to all who are able to assist with distribution efforts.
I would like for all Marlin citizens to know and understand that the water and other needs that came into our community last week and the weekend were provided because city leadership, city personnel, and volunteers made it happen. When statewide disasters occur, larger population centers receive resources first. Our lack of state resources to this community was not because there was no effort put into trying to obtain them. Rural communities, not just in Marlin but around the state, are usually considered the lowest “on the totem pole” and the last areas to be serviced, especially with a disaster of this magnitude. This event wasn’t isolated to Marlin. It affected the entire state of Texas. Because of this, when resource distribution began, Dallas, Houston, Austin, San Antonio, and other large population centers were served first. Falls County received their FEMA shipment of 120 pallets of water last night. Marlin still has not received their FEMA shipment of 150 pallets from our request over a week ago. What Marlin received was because Marlinites made it happen for Marlin despite the risks it took to obtain it. We put our community first because if we had not, we would still be waiting for state and federal assistance. Last night, Mr. Davis and I met with Beto O’Rourke because we reached out to him and he responded to hear what we needed in Marlin. He made himself available to us while he was in Rosebud. We expressed the need for plumbers to assist in helping Marlinites repair their individual home needs. Again, if we don’t speak up for ourselves, no one else will. We are praying that he is able to secure some assistance for Marlin homeowners because some people have had their entire plumbing systems destroyed by this storm and recovery for them is going to be costly and, in some cases, impossible. There has been a lot of negativity around these issues but rest assured, we are true Marlinites and we have ALWAYS taken care of each other and the world bore witness to that. #Marlinstrong
Hon. Mayor Carolyn Lofton