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'Everything becomes more difficult' - bakery owner says on latest boil water advisory

"You get an immediate headache," said Conrad. "Immediately you know it's going to be a bad day."

NEW ORLEANS - Just a few days ahead of Thanksgiving, bakers at the Bywater Bakery on Dauphine Street are hard at work.

“Small businesses, especially something like a bakery, the holidays are so important to their health over the whole the year,” said Bywater Bakery owner Chaya Conrad.

But the work went from full-speed to a snail's pace Saturday following a boil water advisory for the entire east bank of Orleans Parish.

“You get an immediate headache,” said Conrad. “Immediately you know it’s going to be a bad day.”

Conrad says each time there is an advisory everything becomes more difficult.

“There is a whole protocol that goes into place,” said Conrad. “Immediately you got to dump all your ice. You got to buy all new ice, you’ve got to start boiling water to wash dishes.”

That’s not even the hardest part, according to Conrad.

“We use water in the recipes. We got to bring the water up to a boil and then you go to bring the water back down so you can actually use it,” said Conrad.

This process can take hours and time is money.

It impacts “productivity and that’s a money loss,” said Conrad. “Just for a simple task everything costs more.”

It’s very frustrating for Conrad but yet she says she has hope in the new leader of the Sewerage and Water Board, Ghassan Korban.

“From what I hear, he’s got the credentials to turn it around so I hope he can,” said Conrad.

The boil water advisory was lifted Sunday just over 24 hours after it was announced.

Paul Dudley can be reached at pdudley@wwltv.com.

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