Photo: Cayla.campPR · CC BY-SA 4.0Living in Petal, MS: what to set up and who to call
Tap water in most of Petal comes from the City of Petal water system, which has a clean five-year EPA record (about 20% of systems its size had a health-based violation) and a latest lead result below detection. Forrest General Hospital, 6.3 miles away, is the nearest emergency room.
I’m new in town
What to set up in Petal, and who provides it. Tap an answer for the details and where they come from.
Power, water and internet
Who to call to start service at a new address in Petal.
Power comes from Mississippi Power
Mississippi Power (Mississippi Power Co), an investor-owned utility, serves all of Petal. Its homes paid an average of 15.7¢ per kWh in 2025, about $179 a month (its average across Mississippi).
Service territory: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map dated Aug 2023). Prices and customers: EIA-861, 2025.
Water comes from City of Petal water system
The City of Petal water system supplies Petal: about 86% of residents live in its service area. Sunrise Utility Assn Inc serves another 7%. About 7% of homes are outside any mapped community water system, most likely on private wells, which EPA doesn’t regulate. It draws ground water and serves 9,509 people in all.
No health-based violations reported to EPA in the five years to October 2026, like 80% of the 5,012 systems serving 3,301–10,000 people.
The latest lead result on file, the 90th percentile of homes sampled in Jan 2022–Dec 2024, was 0.0 ppb, below the 15 ppb action level that applied. Results below detection are reported as 0, so 0 doesn’t mean no lead at any tap.
The system’s full record: EPA ECHO report
EPA SDWIS via Envirofacts (violations pulled Oct 9, 2026) and ECHO (lead samples, 2026Q3); service area: EPA Community Water System Service Area Boundaries v3.0 (EPA’s estimate). Violations are counted by the start of their compliance period. MS0180011.
6 home internet providers serve Petal
100% of 4,574 addresses can get 100/20 Mbps; 52% can get fiber.
| Provider | Technology | Addresses | Fastest (Mbps) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xfinity | Cable | 99% | 1,200/35 |
| AT&T | Fixed wireless, Fiber, DSL | 59% | 5,000/5,000 |
| defastlink | Fiber | 43% | 1,000/1,000 |
| C Spire | Fixed wireless | 100% | 100/20 |
| Verizon | Fixed wireless | 64% | 300/20 |
| T-Mobile | Fixed wireless | 39% | 100/20 |
FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025. Availability as providers report it, not speeds people get.
We don’t have Petal’s trash rules yet
Pickup rules, the dump and recycling in Petal.
Where your child goes to school
Public school districts and the school path by grade.
Petal is in Petal School District.
A+School gradeSee Schools →U.S. Department of Education, NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25. Enrollment rules and registration are the district’s.
Town hall and registering to vote
Who to call, and how to register.
Election office: FVAP local election office directory, updated Sep 2023; jurisdictions: EAC EAVS 2024. Registration rules and links: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Petal is in ZIP code 39465
ZIP codes where Petal residents live, with the share of the town in each.
| ZIP | Post office name | Share of Petal | ZIP’s residents in Petal |
|---|---|---|---|
| 39465 | Petal, MS | 100% | 48% |
Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas, by census block; post office names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). ZIPs created since 2020 are missing.
Getting around, the ER and the library
One line each; the subject pages have the rest.
ER: CMS hospital data. Library: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024.
Questions about living in Petal
Who supplies Petal’s drinking water, and has it had violations?
The City of Petal water system (EPA ID MS0180011). It reported no health-based violations to EPA in the five years to October 2026; 80% of systems its size had none. Its latest lead 90th percentile was 0.0 ppb (Jan 2022–Dec 2024), against a 15 ppb action level.
Who provides electricity in Petal?
Mississippi Power (Mississippi Power Co), an investor-owned utility. Its homes paid about 15.7¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA).
What internet providers serve Petal?
Xfinity, AT&T, defastlink, C Spire, Verizon, T-Mobile (FCC, as of December 2025).
What ZIP codes are in Petal?
39465. Census 2020 ZIP Code Tabulation Areas.
What school district is Petal in?
Petal School District.
How do I register to vote in Petal?
Mississippi has no online registration; you can register in person until 30 days before Election Day or by mail (postmarked 30 days before). Elections here are run by the Forrest County Registrar. Check your registration at msegov.com.
Sources & dates
Every answer above names its source. Here they are with their dates.
- Water: EPA SDWIS (Envirofacts, pulled Oct 9, 2026), ECHO SDWA 2026Q3, EPA CWS Service Area Boundaries v3.0.
- Power: HIFLD Electric Retail Service Territories (map Aug 2023); EIA-861 final 2025.
- Trash: OpenStreetMap, Geofabrik extract of Oct 9, 2026. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).
- ZIP codes: Census 2020 ZCTA relationship files; GeoNames postal codes (CC BY 4.0).
- Schools: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024–25.
- Registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024 (read Oct 10, 2026). Official sites and area codes: Wikidata.
- Election office: FVAP local election office directory (fetched Oct 10, 2026; each record dated), EAC EAVS 2024 jurisdictions; registration and lookup links from vote.gov’s state data, checked Oct 10, 2026.
- Internet: FCC National Broadband Map, as of December 2025.