A.M. ATL: Keep boiling that water, folks
Morning, y’all! Welcome back. Expect temperatures in the high 80s, with the chance for scattered storms this afternoon and evening.
Today’s newsletter offers the latest on a former police officer standing trial on murder charges, a power outage at Hartsfield-Jackson and a Georgia-Georgia Tech matchup in the NCAA Baseball Tournament.
But first: Atlanta’s ongoing water fiasco.
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A WOEFUL WEEKEND
It was one epic disaster of a weekend in Atlanta — and the issues ain’t over yet.
The city’s latest water crisis closed the Georgia Aquarium, postponed concerts, hampered hospital and hotel operations and shuttered scores of restaurants. With Mayor Andre Dickens initially AWOL, thousands upon thousands of residents sat high and dry for the better part of two days.
They’re still operating under a boil-water advisory and a state of emergency.
Boil-water advisory: Watershed crews repaired the primary main break near Joseph E. Boone Boulevard NW on Saturday evening. New issues along Euclid and North avenues got fixed Sunday while work continued on a separate break near West Peachtree and 11th streets in Midtown.
- Around 1 a.m. Monday, the city said residents in the area should expect “temporary water interruptions.”
Accordingly, a boil-water advisory remains in affect for a huge swath of the city. The map is below, but officials urge anyone that’s experienced disrupted service or fluctuating water pressure to proceed with caution while drinking, cooking, preparing baby food or brushing their teeth.
The Georgia Environmental Protection Division must sign off on lifting the advisory. City officials previously suggested that could come as soon as today.
How we got here: Aging infrastructure plagues many major American cities, and Atlanta isn’t any different. As my colleague Mirtha Donastorg reports, three major water lines converge near Joseph E. Boone Boulevard and James P. Brawley Drive.
- The 48-inch main and 36-inch transmission line that broke at the intersection Friday? More than 80 years old.
- The steel pipes also weren’t fitted together in the most “efficient alignment,” watershed commissioner Al Wiggins Jr. said. That lead to corrosion.
- Add in an outdated design and tight spaces for crews to maneuver, and you get lengthy repair times.
Atlanta voters just last month approved the extension of a 1% sales tax to help pay for water and sewer infrastructure upgrades.
Social media suggests they expected better — and that the Atlanta City Council just might get an earful during their meeting later today.
Stay tuned to AJC.com throughout the day (and the rest of the week) for updates on the situation and its fallout.
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OFFICER ON TRIAL
The trial of former Doraville police officer Miles Bryant, who’s accused of killing 16-year-old Susana Morales in 2022, is set to begin today in Gwinnett County.
“No amount of money, no amount of justice, can ever bring her back to us,” Morales’ sister, Jasmine, told the AJC.
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MORE TOP STORIES
» A Sunday afternoon power outage left some travelers in the dark on Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport’s Concourse B.
» Now offering same-day delivery via Instacart: Home Depot.
» The publisher of the election conspiracy film “2000 Mules,” apologized to a metro Atlanta man it falsely accused of voting fraud and will stop distribution.
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NEW VOTERS
Nearly 250,000 Georgia green card holders are eligible to become naturalized citizens — and cast a vote — this year. That’s more than enough to influence the presidential election, a fact that’s not lost on advocacy groups or the potential citizens themselves.
“It’s really inspiring,” a leader at Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta said. “They want to participate. They want to vote.”
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NATION AND WORLD
» While Israel mulls a new cease-fire deal proposed by the U.S., the military says it found the remains of a person previously presumed to be taken hostage by Hamas.
» Mexican voters elected Claudia Sheinbaum as their first female president.
» Jury selection begins today in the gun case against President Joe Biden’s son Hunter.
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DAWGS ON TOP
Georgia baseball bested rival Georgia Tech 8-6, a dramatic extra-innings win that clinched the Bulldogs’ first trip to an NCAA Super Regional since 2008. They’ll play 10th-seeded N.C. State.
“Every day you wake up you’ve got to believe in yourself,” coach Wes Johnson said.
More sports highlights:
- Charlie Morton’s six scoreless innings led the Braves to a 3-1 win over the Athletics. Sean Murphy drove in the go-ahead run.
- Atlanta United got goals from Thiago Almada and Xande Silva but lost their home match with Charlotte, 3-2.
- The Atlanta Dream lost 69-50 to the undefeated Connecticut Sun.
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GOOD EATS
New Buckhead spots offering boba tea and dips headline this week’s roundup of restaurant news. (Don’t forget to check out the AJC’s new guide to eating and drinking your way around Savannah, too!)
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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
» Gridlock Guy: The safest cars for teens
» Simone Biles cruises to 9th national title
» Live Nation reveals data breach at its Ticketmaster subsidiary
» Jose Ibarra pleads not guilty in Laken Riley slaying case
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ON THIS DATE
June 3, 1997
A jury finds Timothy McVeigh — the man responsible for bombing a federal building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people — guilty on all counts.
The same jury later sentenced McVeigh to death, a penalty carried out in 2001.
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PHOTO OF THE DAY
AJC contributor Robb Cohen captured rapper Megan Thee Stallion performing during her Sunday night show at State Farm Arena. Atlanta’s water woes delayed the show originally set for Friday.
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ONE MORE THING
Andy Negra is one of three Georgia World War II veterans returning to Normandy this week for the 80th anniversary of D-Day. He’s got good life advice, too.
“If you have a problem, solve it,” he said. “And if you can’t solve it, do like you are crossing the street and you have a puddle of water in front of you. Either go through that water or around the water or jump over the water. But keep going.”
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Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact me at tyler.estep@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
Tyler Estep hosts the AJC Win Column, Atlanta's new weekly destination for all things sports. He also shepherds the Sports Daily and Braves Report newsletters to your inbox.
