A major leak that had all but shut down Dawes County Water District 1, which includes the Whitney Village and Whitney Rural Water Systems, since early yesterday morning has been found and repairs are underway.District spokesman Dixie Eaton says the leak was discovered in a wheatfield about 6-miles southeast of Whitney late this morning, but she has no estimate on when repairs will be completed and water will resume flowing.

Mike Kesselring, the water system operator, issued a Boil Water Notice this morning before the leak was even discovered. He emphasizes it was a precaution since the integrity of the system had been compromised by the leak.

He plans to chlorinate the water as a further precaution once repairs to the line are completed, but hasn’t decided how long he’ll continue to add chlorine. The water district has about 50 rural customers in addition to those living in Whitney.

Kesselring also works with the Crawford city water system and says it also had a major leak recently. He doesn’t know if the problems are somehow related.

“Over the last week I don’t know if some sort of a mild tremor went through or just the ground shifted here or what but each of the systems I’m associated has had a leak of some sort.”

His work with the water systems is actually just a sideline for Kesselring, who is also chairman of the Nebraska Tourism Commission and owner of the High Plains Homestead and Drifters’ Cookshack northwest of Crawford.