BRANCHVILLE, S.C. — The Orangeburg County town of Branchville received $1,075,000 million to upgrade its water system with new water lines.
Mayor Frank Dickson said the new technology will help to prevent water main breaks and allow the town to know more quickly when something goes wrong.
“My neighbor next door, you see his done bust about four or five times and he was getting dirt in his system and a couple more neighbors complained about it so I’m happy they did get the money for it," said resident Sean Shuler.
Shuler is a resident of Branchville. He says he's excited the town has received more than $1 million in funding to install the new water lines. The money was awarded through the State Revolving Fund's Bureau of Water, with a $20,000 match.
“The system we’re putting in, we’ll be able to read the meters from city hall. If somebody has a leak, a problem at their house, it’ll flash on their computers that they have a problem," said Mayor Dickson.
Last year, the town reported about four water main breaks a month.
The new water lines will be installed in areas where the town has seen a lot of these water main breaks happen on Stokes Court, Reeves Branch Road, Evans Street, and Bridge Street.
Town leadership says Bridge Street is one of the town's most populated residential areas.
The water lines run into some neighboring towns including Bowman and Rowesville, and supply water to a total of about 600 customers.
Bidding for contractors on this project starts in October.