The San Gabriel County Water District is installing a new water pump system near the reservoir located on South Santa Anita Avenue next to San Marino High School’s softball and football fields. The new pump should be operable by the end of the year.
The old pump, which had been in service since 1924, was destroyed last month to create room for the new pump. The new pump will go deeper with the hope of yielding more water. Known as ‘Well 16,’ the new aquifer will serve the cities of San Gabriel and Rosemead and, in case of emergency, the City of San Marino.
The drilling for the new pump system is being done by Hydro Resources, a water well drilling company based in Texas. The drill, which is approximately the height of a full grown tree, produces a light buzzing noise between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. that can be heard from the SMHS football field, Robles Avenue and Shakespeare Drive.
The long hours of drilling are necessary, said James Prior, General Manager of the San Gabriel County Water District, to avoid the threat of a well collapse. Prior said that continuous drilling is normal for this type of work, but “we never went to 24 hours of drilling so we can be a little nicer to the neighbors.”
Prior added that community outreach done before the start of the project has kept complaints from residents to a minimum.
The equipping phase will start after the completion of the drilling phase in mid-June. Equipping work, which involves installing the instruments that make the well fully functional, will be done Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. This phase is expected to take several months, according to Prior.
