The Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) has issued a boil water advisory for the Allen County RWD 10 public water supply system located in southern Allen County.
The advisory took effect on Monday, July 13 and will remain in effect until the conditions that placed the system at risk of bacterial contamination are resolved.
KDHE officials issued the advisory because of a waterline break resulting in a loss of pressure in the distribution system. Failure to maintain adequate pressure may result in a loss of chlorine residuals and bacterial contamination.
Ty Lord, president of the rural water district, said an individual contractor was working south of Monarch Cement Monday to drill holes for fence posts and inadvertently damaged the waterline. Lord confirmed the break has since been fixed, but the boil water advisory is still in effect.
Allen County RWD 10 is located south of Humboldt and extends south to the Neosho County line.
Customers should observe the following precautions until further notice:
- Boil water for one minute prior to drinking or food preparation or use bottled water.
- Dispose of ice cubes and do not use ice from a household automatic ice maker.
- If your tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears.
- Disinfect dishes and other food contact surfaces by immersion for at least one minute in clean tap water that contains one teaspoon of unscented household bleach per gallon of water.
- Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled. Supervision of children is necessary while bathing so that water is not ingested. Persons with cuts or severe rashes may wish to consult their physicians.
Regardless of whether the public water supplier or Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE) announced a boil water advisory, only KDHE can issue the rescind order following testing at a certified laboratory.
For consumer questions, please contact the water system at 620-224-7370, or KDHE at 785-296-5514.
For consumer information please visit KDHE’s PWS Consumer Information webpage: https://www.kdhe.ks.gov/468/Disruption-in-Water-Service
Restaurants and other food establishments that have questions about the impact of the boil water advisory on their business can contact the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s food safety & lodging program at [email protected] or call 785-564-6767.
