Eleven residents of Palm City decided to tap into the county's municipal drinking water line illegally before the final tests of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection agency were made to verify that the water is safe for consumption.

According to the director of the utilities company, the line would have been opened within a few days, but these residents were acting illegally by tapping the line prematurely. When county workers made this discovery, they were forced to shut the line down on Wednesday to stop the residents from receiving the water into their homes.

Residents within the general area have been waiting for about 10 years to have county water lines replace their wells. Many residents believe that their wells were contaminated by toxic chemicals from a close by nursery that went out of business 14 years ago.

The illegal tapping of the water system is merely a misdemeanor. Officials have not decided whether they will prosecute the homeowners or not.

After the water line is officially open, the residents will be required to apply for the use of the line as a paying customer and will also be required to pay the deposit before being able to use it again.