Boil water still in effect, frustrating Fort Myers neighborhood on July 4th

Neighbors living along Treeline Avenue in Fort Myers were making some last-second adjustments to their Independence Day plans because of the ongoing boil water notice.

However, they didn’t expect to consider the nasty stench near the construction site.

“It’s really, really bad. Like poo-poo,” said Luis.

“The first thing I smelled was sewage, and having [to] smell raw sewage around a water main isn’t good, especially one that just broke. So, I guess I’ll take the boil water thing a little more seriously at this point,” said Mike Keula, a man who lives near the water main break.

You know it’s bad when people talk about something other than not having clean water in the Florida Summer.

Serious construction followed a water main break along Treeline Avenue on Tuesday.

Mike lives nearby, and by now, he knows the drill.

“I’ve lived here since 2004,” said Mike. “And this is maybe, I don’t know, the fifth, sixth or seventh time we’ve had a water break between Pelican Preserve and Colonial.”

Luis was one of the unlucky ones who lost all of his water pressure on Tuesday. But since then, things have improved for him.

“Yesterday, we spent all night without water. It was awful,” said Luis.

But neighbors are not quite out of the woods yet.

City Councilman Liston Bochette said residents still need to take precautions.

It’s going to be repaired as quick as we can,” said Bochette. “We’re trying to get those services restored ASAP.”

For Mike and others like him, the safety measures are becoming challenging.

“It’s a hassle, especially when it’s this friggin hot out. It’s hard to get out. There’s no water in any of the community activities. So you just have to put up with it,” said Mike.

Who wouldn’t be upset when temperatures were in the 90s and you could not access your water?