DRINKING WATER WARNING
E. coli is present in City of Blackfoot’s water
BOIL YOUR WATER BEFORE USING
This boil water advisory is not in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 10-26-2021, 5 routine water samples were taken throughout the City of Blackfoot. One of the samples taken in the Southeast part of Blackfoot tested positive for E. coli bacteria. These bacteria can make you sick, and are especially a concern for people with weakened immune systems.
What should I do? What does this mean?
DO NOT DRINK THE WATER WITHOUT BOILING IT FIRST. Bring all water to a boil, let it boil for one minute and let it cool before using, or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and food preparation until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.
E. coli are bacteria whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Human pathogens in these wastes can cause short-term effects, such as diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms. They may pose a greater health risk for infants, young children, the elderly, and people with severely compromised immune systems.
The symptoms above are not caused only by organisms in drinking water. If you experience any of these symptoms and they persist, you may want to seek medical advice. People at increased risk should seek advice from their healthcare providers about drinking this water.
What is being done?
We are performing the following actions:
- We are completing a comprehensive assessment of our water system and of our monitoring and operational practices to identify and correct any causes of the contamination.
- We are chlorinating and flushing the water system.
- We will begin taking samples throughout the system beginning Monday 11-1-2021.
We will inform you when tests show no bacteria are present and you no longer need to boil your water. We anticipate resolving the problem within 7 days.
For more information, please contact the Blackfoot Water Dept. at 208 785 8608 or 10 W. Walker Blackfoot, ID 83221. Our hours are M-Th 7am-5pm, Fri 8am-12pm. General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by bacteria and other disease-causing organisms are available from the EPA Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791.
Please share this information with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail.
This notice is being sent to you by City of Blackfoot. State Water System ID#: 6060007.
Date distributed: 10-28-21.