DAPHNE — A work crew’s mistake has given some Daphne students an unexpected vacation break. They student could return to classes Monday

When the Belforest Water System was compromised Wednesday, school officials had no choice but to close Daphne Elementary East and Daphne Middle School.

“Both schools were closed Thursday and will remain closed until further notice,” said Baldwin County School communications director Terry Wilhite. “The water has to be tested and cleared by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management before Daphne East and Daphne Middle School can be reopened.

“All parents have been notified via the school system's rapid notification system.”

The Baldwin County Sewer System was working on Rigsby Road installing a sewer line at a new house. Instead of tapping into the sewer line, they cut into the fresh water line. Work crews worked into Wednesday night to repair the break.

But just fixing the breach is not enough. Whenever a water line is breached, the system must issue a boil water notice. Normally, it takes a couple of days to get test results back after the system has been repaired and flushed.

Anyone who gets their water from the Belforest Water System should boil their water before drinking it or cooking with it. The rule of thumb is to bring the water to a rolling boil and hold it there for one minute.

The boil water notice only affects Belforest Water. Houses served by Daphne city water are not affected.