Hearing For Suspended Water Department Official Pending

A hearing for a suspended water department official has yet to be scheduled in New Brunswick. 

At Friday's city council reorganization meeting, city administrator Thomas Loughlin said an attorney for Edward O'Rourke has requested more time to prepare an argument, a request the city has agreed to. 

In November, it was announced that O'Rourke, a 27-year employee of the city, was suspended without pay from his job as license operator for the New Brunswick Water Department after a Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) investigation showed that he repeatedly submitted false information regarding the city's water supply between 2010 and spring 2013.  

The DEP took a closer look at the water department's water quality logs after director Frank Marascia reported a problem this past summer with the turbidity of the water, or the clarity and quality of water before it enters treatment.

O'Rourke was also fined $17,000 and had his license revoked. 

Loughlin previously stated that O'Rourke is entitled to hearings conducted by both the city and the state before it is determined whether he can return to work.  

The New Brunswick Water Department serves 50,000 customers in New Brunswick, Franklin Township and Milltown. 

On November 20, Marascia said that no water issues have been reported since June 2013.