Austell water customers, who have not paid their bills in more than six months, will have a little longer to delay their payments - until after New Year’s Day.

Around 140 to 175 accounts are due to be disconnected at any given time, said Denise Soesbee, the city’s Finance Department director, in an email to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Monday.

There are about 3,200 city utility accounts, she added.