Water is starting to flow again in downtown Atlanta after a shutdown that began Friday

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ATLANTA (AP) – Water pressure returned to downtown Atlanta and its neighborhoods on Sunday after a two-day water outage shut down businesses and left faucets dry in many homes.

A large swath of the city remains under orders to boil water before drinking, but Mayor Andre Dickens said at the end of a news conference that one of the two major water breaks affecting the city has been repaired.

“I know this has been a difficult and frustrating day for many of you, but I am pleased to have some positive news to report tonight,” Dickens said.

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The first-time Democratic mayor, who is up for re-election in 2025, apologized again, even as residents continued to criticize the city’s response. Among the critics: Megan Thee Stallion, whose Friday and Saturday night shows in the downtown State Farm Arena were canceled.

“Call the chief! All day long he’s been telling us we can perform,” the rapper said in a video posted on Saturday.

Arena management said they hope to have a Sunday night event to make up for Friday night’s performance.

The problem began on Friday morning where three large water channels intersected in the western part of the city. Watershed Management Commissioner Al Wiggins Jr., said in a news conference that at least some of the pipes that burst are old and corroded. With the pipes coming together in a confined area, it becomes very difficult to repair, with only one worker at a time working on the manhole that accesses the intersection. Repairs were completed Friday afternoon, officials said.

Another water main later burst in the city’s Midtown neighborhood, which is studded with new offices, hotels and apartment towers. Wiggins said officials are not sure what the broken pipe is. The leak continued to spread through the city’s streets Sunday. City officials said Saturday they are working on ways to isolate the leak from the larger water system and are waiting for parts needed to repair the pipes. Dickens declared a state of emergency so that the city could buy materials and hire workers without following normal purchasing laws.

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Faltering infrastructure is a common story in older parts of American cities. Atlanta has spent billions in recent years to upgrade old sewers and water infrastructure, including a tunnel drilled through 5 miles of rock to provide the city with more than 30 days of water saved. Last month, voters approved a 1-cent sales tax to pay for federally mandated sewer upgrades. The city often dumps untreated sewage into the river and the Chattahoochee River.

City workers spent much of Saturday distributing water and setting up portable toilets at several fire stations while checking on senior citizens living in high-rises.

Officials have been widely criticized for being slow to update residents on the situation. The city and water management department sent an update after 8 pm on Friday and waited more than 12 hours to update residents again. Dickens did not address the media until 2 p.m. Friday, explaining that he was in Memphis, Tennessee, when the trouble began.

Someone in the affected area posted flyers around the neighborhood asking “Don’t have water?” and “Help us find our mayor.”

Some attractions and businesses, including the Georgia Aquarium, reopened on Sunday, although the aquarium warned that orders for boiled water would not have ice or ice fountains in cafeterias.

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