Is Your Water Safe After a Hurricane? How to Test and Purify Drinking Water
After a hurricane or any natural disaster, securing food, shelter, and clean water becomes critical. Even if water is running from your tap, can you be sure it’s safe to drink? The last thing you want after a hurricane is for your family to fall ill from what you thought was safe drinking water.
Why would a Hurricane affect the water supply?
During a hurricane there is often flooding and tidal surges. This rise in water level can allow untreated water to mix with what is supposed to be a clean water supply.
Not only does the flooding contaminate the water supply, but the hurricane may also damage water treatment facilities or knock out power. With electricity and internet being disrupted the local authorities may not be able to communicate if your water source has been contaminated. This can lead to people unknowingly consuming unsafe water.
How do I know if my water is safe after a hurricane?
After a hurricane, it is important to follow local public safety channels. The local authorities will make updates on when local water treatment facilities are operating again, or if there are any precautions in place.
But there may be periods of time when the local public safety officials haven’t made any official announcements or are unsure of the water safety. In these cases, you should assume the water isn’t safe unless you are testing it.
Because it is not realistic to collect a sample of your drinking water, send it to a laboratory, and wait for results. You can use an at-home water test kit to get immediate results.
The most important test to run on your water will be a bacteria test. Bacteria in untreated water can cause severe illness and symptoms like diarrhea and vomiting.
The Do-It-Yourself Bacteria Drinking Water Test Kit will give you a “Presence” or “Absence” result for Coliform Bacteria. This will give you an easy way to pre-screen your water, if it shows positive for Coliform Bacteria, you will need to take extra precautions or get your water from another source.
The DIY Bacteria Test Kits have an unlimited shelf life, and we offer a discount on the 4 pack. We recommend keeping several of these kits in case of hurricanes or other natural disasters to be able to check your drinking water.
Through October 31st, 2024, we are offering 25% off and free shipping for Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina with coupon code Relief25
This Coupon code will apply to any of our DIY Test Kits.
What if my results are positive?
If your DIY Test comes back positive for Coliform Bacteria, there are a few steps you can take. The first is to not drink any water that shows positive for bacteria. Also do not use it to cook, clean dishes, brush your teeth, or make baby formula.
If you are on well water, contact your local health department about the guidance for disinfecting the well.
Boil Water:
Boiling your water after a hurricane is one of the best ways to kill harmful bacteria.
If your water is cloudy, it will need to be filtered before boiling. You can use something like a clean cloth or coffee filter to get the larger particles out of the water. If you don’t have anything to use as a filter, you can let the particulates settle out of the water and carefully pour the clear water from the top of your container.
Once it is filtered, bring the water to a rolling boil and boil for at least 1 minute. You can boil for longer, 1 minute it just the minimum.
Once your water is boiled, you’ll want to store it in a clean container. Once a container has contaminated water in it, do not store boiled water in it afterwards.
Boiling water is one of the best methods you can use but it does assume you have a way to boil your water, if you have electric appliances and the power is out, you may not have a way to boil your water.
Bottled Water:
If your household has stored water that has not been in contact with any contaminated water, you can use it instead of water from the tap.
Because you’ll have a limited supply of bottled water, only use it as necessary. It should be reserved for drinking water and essential tasks only.
If your family is relying on bottled water, do not fill up bottles with water from contaminated sources. This could lead to you or other family members accidentally drinking water they believe is safe but isn’t.
Bleach:
Adding household bleach to water will kill most disease-causing organisms. When using bleach, it is important to follow a few simple safety steps.
The first is to never mix bleach with ammonia or any other cleaning products. If you are using bleach, only use bleach.
The next is to make sure you are using the right amount. If you don’t use enough, it may not properly disinfect your drinking water. But you also don’t want the concentration of bleach to be too high.
If your water is clear, you’ll use 8 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of water. If it is cloudy, first filter it through something like a clean cloth or coffee filter, then use 16 drops of bleach for 1 gallon of water. For either method let sit for 30 minutes minimum before using.
Chemical Tablets:
There are chemical tablets that can be used to disinfect water. One of the most popular methods is by using iodine tablets. You’ll often find these tablets with camping supplies. Because concentrations will change based on the manufacturer, follow the directions on the container.
These tablets will not be as effective as boiling or bleach. They will kill most viruses and bacteria but not all.
Filters:
Filters are another common way to clean drinking water. These are popular for camping and backpackers. While you can find these at most outdoors stores, they do vary in effectiveness. According to the CDC, portable filters must have an absolute pore size of 0.3 micron or smaller to remove bacteria and a pore size of 1 micron of smaller to remove parasites.
The CDC also recommends using a chemical disinfectant after filtering to ensure you remove all the harmful bacteria and viruses.
Summary:
After a hurricane, ensuring your drinking water is safe is crucial. Contaminated water supplies can lead to serious health risks, but by following local advisories and using simple purification methods, you can protect your family. This guide explains how hurricanes affect water safety and provides practical steps to test and purify water at home.
