The Big Flush on Super Bowl Sunday?
There’s an urban myth that goes something like this: the New York City water supply becomes stressed at halftime of the Super Bowl each year because millions of New Yorkers rush to their bathrooms and flush almost simultaneously… 🏈 🚽 💦
Well, the data show that myth is half true.
No, the City’s water supply does not become stressed during the biggest TV and sporting event of the year. But, our water supply operators do see a clear and drastic uptick in the demand for water during key moments of the game.
On a normal Sunday, the demand for water follows the typical daily patterns of the City. As night falls and more people go to sleep, the demand for water steadily goes down. That pattern continues until people begin waking up, showering, brushing their teeth, making their coffee, and preparing for the day ahead.
Super Bowl Sunday 2018 is an anomaly to that pattern. The demand for water did not decline steadily throughout the evening and nighttime hours. In fact, the City’s demand for water jumped by MILLIONS of gallons three times during the night of the big game. By analyzing our data and the events of last year’s Super Bowl, we found that these significant spikes in water demand coincided with:
- the start of the halftime show,
- the end of the halftime show,
- and the end of the game.
Seems logical, right? Viewers are glued to their chairs during the game, commercials, and halftime show. That means they are also rushing to use water 💦— and, yes, flush the toilet 🚽— during those few breaks in between and after the game.
This comes as no surprise to our staff. Our water supply operators have been watching and monitoring this trend for decades. They prepare for it. In the hours before the Super Bowl begins, our water supply operators will send some extra water down to Hillview Reservoir to account for the spikes in demand throughout the night. The volume of water stored in Hillview Reservoir is closely tied to the water pressure throughout New York City’s distribution system — so keeping the reservoir full and accounting for the extra demand ensures that none of our customers notice a drop in water pressure.
It’s all part of running the biggest municipal water supply in the United States — whether our teams are in the big game or not.
