Authorities in the South Carolina city of Florence are warning residents to boil their water in the lingering aftermath of the hurricane-turned-storm until tests confirm that the water does not pose a hazard to human health.
People in parts of the city of Florence—those who live north of Palmetto Street, US 76—should vigorously boil their water as a “precautionary measure to protect public health until test results confirm the water is safe to drink,” a Sept. 26 advisory warns, SCNow.com reported.
“Water customers in this area should vigorously boil their water for at least one (1) full minute prior to drinking or cooking until notified by the City of Florence that the advisory is lifted,” the notice states. “Also, any ice made from water that has not been boiled should not be used for drinking purposes.”
Florence city officials said in the advisory that the water quality “is unknown at this time.”
City officials in Florence, S.C., say test results for bacteriological quality of the water should be completed on Sept. 27.(OpenStreetMaps)City officials said water quality issues are due to flooding and debris from hurricane Florence, WBTW reported. They issued the advisory after multiple residents reported low water pressure.
“With the effects of (Hurricane) Florence, the [Great] Pee Dee River has changed dramatically in water quality both as a result of debris and sediment in the river itself but also in the chemical makeup of the river and the alkalinity of the river,” Florence Mayor Stephen Wukela said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference to address the water situation. “That has wreaked havoc as our treatment plant has tried to keep up with the changing water and its effects.”
The city’s surface water plant that handles water from the Pee Dee River experienced problems producing quality treated water earlier in the week. On Monday, the plant produced clean water for much of the day, but limited its production from its normal 12 hours to 8 hours. On Tuesday, the plant was unable to produce “acceptable potable water” because of “the ever-changing conditions of the flooded and debris-laden Pee Dee River,” WBTW reported, citing a press release.
More manpower was added to the plant’s operations on Tuesday night, but workers were unable to produce clean drinking water. Customers on Wednesday continued to experience low water pressure or none at all.
“Currently, we are still attempting to get the Surface Water Plant operational. In addition, we are attempting to restore service to several water plants that were taken offline for normal maintenance on the first of September,” the press release states, according to WBTW. “At this time, it does appear that system pressures are either holding or increasing. However, we do expect this recovery to be slow and should improve significantly late tonight and into the early morning hours.”
City officials said that test results for bacteriological quality should be completed on Thursday, at which time they will notify residents regarding the status of the boil water advisory.
Florence City Manager Drew Griffin told SCNow.com reporters on Wednesday that crews were working round the clock to keep the plant online, but that it could take some time before the water system is restored.
In the meantime, Griffin asked utility customers to conserve water by not running it needlessly, taking shorter showers, and generally using less water.
Griffin said the city would have much work to do over the next three to four days and that if the utility is able to keep its surface water plant online and produce water that meets drinking water standards, then the water system will recover quickly. If not, recovery will be slower.
