10/27/2025
Conflicting letters on possible Legionnaires contamination
- Gyvonne Pinkston
(WASHINGTON, Ga.) - A letter shared through Facebook posts this week advising residents of Brightwood Apartments, 344 Andrew Drive, to immediately stop using their water prompted an official
response from the City of Washington and a subsequent boil-water advisory affecting multiple neighborhoods.
Monday, Oct. 21 — Resident Letter Shared Online
A copy of a letter bearing the letterhead of CAHEC Management Inc., based in Columbia, South Carolina, began circulating through Facebook posts on Oct. 21. The notice informed residents that a case of Legionnaires’ disease had been confirmed and “may have impacted our community.”
“We are recommending that residents in certain units stop using the water immediately,” the letter stated, citing “an abundance of caution” while additional testing was underway. It added that full test results were not expected until “the end of this week at the earliest.”
The notice instructed residents to stop using water immediately and advised that staff would be available to help coordinate temporary relocation. Tenants were offered two options: hotel
accommodations arranged by the owner with a daily allowance, or a comparable allowance for residents who secure their own lodging. Residents were told they must vacate their units for at least two weeks to qualify for the stipend.
The letter listed CAHEC’s corporate address at 7700 Trenholm Road Extension, Columbia, S.C. 29223, and phone number 803-788-3800. According to the company’s website, CAHEC manages properties in
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, including Brightwood and Autumn Lane Apartments in Washington.
Monday, Oct. 21 — City Statement Responds to Rumors
At 1:26 p.m., the City of Washington issued an official Facebook statement addressing what it described as “rumors” about water contamination.
“There is no contamination in the city’s water supply,” the post said. “The city’s water system remains safe and fully compliant with all state and federal standards.”
Officials clarified that the city has no contact or involvement with CAHEC Management Inc. regarding any water issues at Brightwood Apartments. The statement attributed a temporary outage in the area to ongoing water line installation work on Andrew Drive, scheduled to cause service interruptions
Wednesday, Oct. 22, from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Tuesday, Oct. 22 — Boil-Water Advisory Issued
The following afternoon, at 3:24 p.m. Oct. 22, the city issued a boil-water advisory affecting areas from Lundburg Road to Robert Toombs Avenue, including Brightwood Apartments, Ashford Apartments, Angus Motel, Washington Plaza, and Ashley Avenue.
“Please boil all tap water before using it for drinking, cooking or food preparation,” the city’s statement read. The advisory was attributed to ongoing repairs on the water main along Andrew Drive and remains in effect until further notice.
Current Status
As of press time, CAHEC’s investigation into Legionnaires’ exposure at Brightwood Apartments remains ongoing, and the city’s boil-water advisory is still active. City officials maintain that Washington’s public water system is safe and unaffected by the private management company’s internal testing.
In a phone interview Oct. 23, Wilkes County Health Department Nurse Manager Jennifer Jackson confirmed there are no reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease in Wilkes County or anywhere in
Georgia’s 13-county East Central Health District, based in Augusta.
Jackson said the disease is reportable by law, and any positive test result from a hospital or medical lab must be submitted to the Georgia Department of Public Health through SendSS, the State Electronic Notifiable Disease Surveillance System. She said district epidemiologists have been monitoring data daily since reports began circulating online and have found no confirmed cases in the region.
The health department’s statement confirms that, as of now, there are no known cases of Legionnaires’ disease in Wilkes County or the surrounding district.
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