Ferriday — Ferriday Mayor Glen McGlothin said at Tuesday’s town meeting he will be seeking assistance from the National Guard and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide drinking water for Ferriday’s residents.

The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals issued a boil-water advisory late Monday due to existing problems with the town’s water tank.

Department of Health and Hospitals Engineer Chris Soileau, who originally discovered the issues, said the town’s water supply is of “questionable quality.”

Both McGlothin and Soileau implored the town’s residents to boil water for at least one minute before consuming it or using it for cooking.

“This is not a short-term thing,” McGlothin said of the boil order — nor is it a new problem.

Soileau said he made former Ferriday Mayor Gene Allen aware of the problems at the water plant as early as 2006.

“It needs daily maintenance,” Soileau said of the plant.

McGlothin, who was not at Tuesday’s meeting, said during his administration the water was tested weekly without any cause for concern.

McGlothin said he hopes to make contact with the guard and FEMA today to get drinking water into the area as soon as possible.

“This is going to take some time to fix,” Allen said.

In other news, the board passed a motion that would allow the Town of Ferriday to enter into a multi-entity agreement to purchase the Code Red Weather Warning program.

“This can help some people to start getting prepared,” McGlothin said of the system, which calls residents when dangerous weather is approaching.

And McGlothin said once clean-up from the most recent storm is complete, the town will move forward on plans to demolish close to 30 abandoned houses.

“They’re not worth putting a cat or dog into,” he said.

Additionally, McGlothin said there are as many as 100 houses in Ferriday that could be eligible to be condemned and destroyed.

And when the board meets to discuss the town’s budget this July, they’ll be discussing pay raises to the town’s employees.

Alderwoman Gloria Lloyd said she wants to eliminate the possibility of any town worker making more than their supervisor.

McGlothin, and the board, agreed with Lloyd.

The board passed a motion that will allow the town’s finance committee to study how the raises should be implemented.

“We just can’t do anything about it right now,” McGlothin said about giving raises before the next year’s budget is made.