FERRIDAY — Increased water consumption in the last month has placed considerable strain on Ferriday’s already ailing water system, resulting in a period of low water pressure Sunday, Water Superintendent Gregory Griggs said.

A month ago, the town’s water consumption was holding steady at 600,000 gallons a day.

If the consumption keeps at the rate it has been going, however, today alone Ferriday’s water consumers will draw as much as 1.5 million gallons — that’s 900 gallons a minute, Griggs said.

The problem is compounded by the fact that the damaged water tank can’t be filled to capacity.

“We can’t keep up with consumption,” Griggs said.

The water superintendent said Monday that the town was actively looking for what was pulling the water out of the system so quickly, and he said he believes it may be local farmers watering their fields.

If it is the case that the big consumer is a farmer, Griggs said he hopes whoever is doing it will realize what they’re doing soon.

“I hope he gets wind of it and caps his line off and spares Ferriday,” Griggs said.

Meanwhile, Greater Catahoula-Concordia NAACP and Tri-Parish Ministerial Alliance President Justin Conner said the two organizations are calling a community-wide meeting for anyone on the Ferriday water system.

The meeting will be 5 p.m. Wednesday at Greater St. Reed Baptist Church, located on Eighth Street in Ferriday.

The purpose of the meeting is to hear if members of the community have any ideas about possible solutions to the town’s water problems.

“The (town) of Ferriday has been dealing with these problems since I was born, and I am 36,” said Ferriday resident Brian Davis, who is also calling for the meeting.

After all of those years, maybe it is time for somebody else to come up with a plan, Conner said.

“The same people have been at the round table talking about Ferriday’s water woes for 25 years,” he said. “Some of the folks we suppose to be the dumbest can come up with ideas.”