Dozens of Mountain View residents still without water

Mountain View residents in the small pocket of Cuesta Park are still without water.

They've been without water since last Friday, when city officials notified residents that it was contaminated. Now, the city is telling them not to expect anything to change until at least Sunday.

Kathy Bonilla has called Cuesta Park home for a very long time

"I'm 77 this month, and I moved here when I was 7 years old," Bonilla said.

Bonilla said this is the first time she hasn't been able to use the water flowing out of her tap. For the first few days, she couldn't even flush her toilet.

"I keep telling people, we're camping," she said. "It's so hard to brush your teeth; it isn't the normal way. Shower isn't the normal way. We can't wait to go back to normal."

The city has issued a "Do Not Use" order and the water can only be used for flushing toilets and watering ornamental plants. Mountain View is offering to pay for rooms at a list of hotels and reimburse residents for meals and incidental expenses. For Bonilla, who relies on her hospital bed and other medical equipment to live her everyday life, going to a hotel is not an option.

"There's no way I can go to a hotel," she said. "I can't walk at all. I have cerebral palsy from birth."

Many of her neighbors also say they have no choice but to stay in their homes.

"I have a home with 4 pets, 2 adults, and a 6-month-old baby, and they're asking me to go without water like it's nothing," Leslie said.

Leslie lives in one of the 67 homes impacted by contaminated water. Mountain View has declared a state of emergency after two of the five water samples tested positive for the coliform bacteria. The city was not available to answer our questions Wednesday night, but Mayor Emily Ann Ramos released this video statement.

"We are working together with the state regulators to restore safe drinking water to your homes as soon as possible," Mayor Ramos said. "However, only the state can lift this order, and the city does not currently know how long this will take."

Residents were hoping the water would be safe to use by midweek. Many are furious that the timeline has been pushed back to Sunday.

"There should be a way that doesn't happen ever again," resident Jennifer Baron said. "To any neighborhood or anything. The fact that it did happen tells me there was really no plan here. It's a public health hazard."

Bonilla said she didn't realize how hard it would be without having safe, usable water. She hasn't showered for days and is running out of clean clothes to wear. Bonilla wonders how much longer she can hang on.

"I never thought this would happen," she said. "It's just unreal. We're just making the best we can make."