Water tank damaged by Hurricane Michael to be replaced in Gretna

Kierra Reed
Gadsden County News ServiceAlmost eight years ago, a water tank in Gretna was damaged by Hurricane Michael. The city lost the pressure of about 50,000 gallons of water storage due to the damaged tank. The daily usage of the tank is about 325,000 gallons a day.
The new tank will have 650,000 gallons of water storage, doubling the original tank storage.
“We’re in much better position and of course now we have the ability to sustain fire flow pressure,” said Antonio Jefferson, City Manager of Gretna.
The repair cost to fix the tank would have cost the city around $200,000, and with the tank being built back in the early 60s, it would have required more work than the tank was worth. Then, the city decided to apply for funding to build a brand-new tank.
For the city to meet the amount that they needed to replace the tank, they had to apply for grants and funding. They received 1.9 million dollars from the State of Florida, $50,000 from the water management district, and an additional $500,000 to replace the tank.
The construction of the replacement tank is set to start in the next two weeks.