DIXON, Mo. (Aug. 4, 2022) -- Mayor Mike Null announced Thursday afternoon that a water outage that began about 1:30 p.m. is due to a lightning strike. "The plan is to have it pulled tomorrow and fixed the following day," Null said in a prepared statement. "Currently we have the two backup wells running. They are smaller in size and will take time to fill the lines and towers. Please try and conserve water to help with filling the towers. I will keep everyone updated."

According to city officials, planned maintenance on the water lines had originally called for the city water to be shut off at 2 p.m. to repair two leaks, with plans to restore service by 3 p.m., but that hasn't happened.

"The well went down so water is not available," city officials said in a prepared statement. "We are working diligently to be back up and running as soon as possible! We apologize for the inconvenience."

After the main city well went down, work crews began the repair process on the pipes.

At 5:45 p.m., Null announced that city officials "noticed a significant drop in pressure" in the water system about 1:30 p.m., and "after further inspection we noticed the main well had shut off." An inspection "determined that it was struck by lightning," Null said.