WEIRTON — After almost three months, the Weirton Area Water Board announced the lifting of a mandatory water conservation order in the city.

At 12:20 p.m. Wednesday, a notice issued by the Water Board lifted the order, with officials still requesting residents and businesses to be mindful of their water usage to prevent additional conservation orders.

“Customers of the WAWB are asked to exercise prudent, reasonable judgment in the use of water and voluntarily conserve water use in order to minimize the need for a subsequent conservation order,” the notice stated.

The mandatory conservation order was initiated by the Weirton Area Water Board on Dec. 18 because of several dozen line breaks within the water distribution system. It had been extended on two occasions, with the latest being on Feb. 28 and lasting until this Friday.

City and Water Board officials indicated the possibility Monday night during a meeting of Weirton Council, expressing appreciation to Cleveland-Cliffs and James White Construction for their assistance through the installation of a temporary pipeline connection between the company’s water system and the Lee Avenue reservoir located on Marland Heights.

“We’ve been pumping from their reservoir into our reservoir,” Utilities Director A.D. “Butch” Mastrantoni said. “We now are recharging the city and the levels are coming up.”

The water board approved the project through a pair of emergency meetings in late February, to involve the installation of more than 4,000 feet of temporary pipeline and a pumping system, at a cost not to exceed $15,000.

Mastrantoni indicated Monday night his hope was to be able to have water levels high enough in the Weirton system to be able to lift the conservation order by Wednesday, which also would allow for the decommissioning of the use of a tanker task force assisting the Weirton Fire Department, put in place through mutual aid with surrounding fire departments.

While the Weirton Heights area is served by three water tanks — on Penco Road, Belleview Drive and Colliers Way — officials have noted the Lee Avenue reservoir is a key part of the system, requiring adequate levels of water in order to send water to those tanks through pump stations on Texas Street and Rice Boulevard.

Tanks also are located on Skyview Drive and Barone Drive.

In addition to the conservation order, the Weirton Area Water Board had issued a city-wide boil order on Dec. 27 following a break in a 12-inch main water line on Walnut Street, with it fully lifted Jan. 3.

An additional major boil order – for Weirton Heights – was in effect Jan. 23 to Feb. 6.

Crews from the Weirton Area Water Board have been assisted in locating and repairing the water line breaks — projected to have surpassed 150 since the beginning of the crisis — by employees of James White Construction and West Virginia American Water.