Walking down the hallways you may have noticed the odd sight of water fountains wrapped in ripped trash bags and faulty duck tape, clearly marked “Out of Order”. This isn’t just an out of place interior design choice, but actually a rather serious matter. 

According to Mr. Daniel, the Principal of Colonial Forge, “Because the water fountains had been shut down for so long, you get a lot of bacteria buildup.”

 Before opening up the water fountains, they must first be checked to make sure they are safe and clear of bacteria.

The bacteria in question, Legionella, causes Legionnaires. The disease is a serious type of pneumonia, caused by breathing in or drinking even just a tiny drop of water containing the deadly bacteria.

“They have opened up two in the building so far. There’s one upstairs at the top of the stairs near the social studies wing and then there’s one downstairs by the locker rooms,” Mr Daniel stated.

It’s not just Forge either, “…all Stafford county schools are in the same situation,” confirmed Mr. Daniel.

Even if it’s not just Forge it is still definitely affecting our student body, especially athletes.

 Ricardo Magallenes (‘25), a member of the Forge Varsity Cross Country team explained, “I have practice right after school and it’s hard to fill up my water throughout the day. Especially on Y-days, since I only go to the locker rooms and social studies hallway on X-days.”

Sometimes just the long trek upstairs is enough to cause disgruntlement.

“I am so tired of having to walk upstairs to fill up my water bottle every day,” complained LJ Marshall (‘25).

“As we find out that hey, you can open this water fountain up or you could open that water fountain up, I will and I will definitely notify students and staff that certain additional water fountains are open,” Mr. Daniel assured. 

 As of right now water bottles are free in the cafeteria, and at the grab-and-go stations for students in need of water.