The mayor of an Alabama city declared a state of emergency Christmas day after the city’s water system was nearly out of water after severe cold weather caused pipes to burst all over the city.

Selma Mayor James Perkins Jr. took to social media Sunday sending a Christmas Day message with a dire warning.

“Citizens of Selma, due to the deep freeze, water pipes are bursting throughout the city causing a major loss of water to the point that if not stopped, there is a real possibility that we will run out of water,” he wrote.

Perkins urges home owners and business owners to search for broken water lines and if found turn off the water at the city’s meter to stop the rapid depletion of the city’s water supply.

“There are several pipes busted in local businesses, and as we identify those locations were water is running out of doors or windows, we are turning the water off,” Perkins wrote. “But we cannot check all locations. You must check your business location as soon as possible.

“THIS IS AN EMERGENCY! We must stop as many leaks as possible or we will run out of water,” Perkins wrote.