LOCAL NEWS — According to officials at the Metro Utilities Department, the MUD office located at 705 Fayetteville Highway will be going 100 percent remote on Tuesday due to a COVID-19 exposure and others reasons.

“To minimize exposure because of the rising COVID cases, the office staff at Metro Utility Department will be closing the office and working remotely. Customer payments will be retrieved from the night deposit slot. As released earlier in the month, there will not be late fees charged for December billing as some customers still have not received their bill.” 

Effective immediately, the office staff will work from home and can still be reached by phone to answer questions, set up new service, and report a water emergency. Maintenance employees will continue to work in the field without interruption. Operators at both the Metro Water Plant located on the Lynchburg Highway and at the Metro Sewer Plant off Highway 129 will continue operate normally.

“We need to do what we can to keep everyone healthy and the office up and running,” said MUD officials. “This means working at home until further notice. Hold times may be a little longer than normal due to staff working remotely. If customers would prefer to leave a message, they can do so and someone will call them back as soon as possible.”

Drive thru payments will no longer be available without onsite staff but MUD customers may make payments via mail, automatic bank draft, payment drop-off, or online on the MUD website through the payment portal. Customers will need their account number and last four digits of their phone number in order to access their online account.

MUD staff says that they plans to re-evaluate the situation on January 19, the day that Governor Bill Lee’s latest Executive Order expires. That EO encourages all those Tennesseans who can to work from home to do so. To view the full executive order, click here.

For more information, contact MUD officials at 931-759-4297, visit their website, or follow their Facebook page. •

{The Lynchburg Times is an independently owned and operated newspaper that publishes new stories every morning. Covering Metro Moore County government, Jack Daniel’s Distillery, Nearest Green Distillery, Tims Ford State Park, Motlow State Community College, Moore County High School, Moore County Middle School, Lynchburg Elementary, Raider Sports, plus regional and state news.}