Some Residents on Boil Water Advisory

By 250 News

The waters are receding,  and for some areas there is a new concern. 

Water quality.

Valemount and McBride are both on boil water advisories.  Valemount Mayor Jeannette Townsend says it’s more of a precaution "Our water is from a glacier, so normally it is aqua in colour, but  right now it is brown, so it is because of the turbidity  that we are advising people to boil the water first."

Northern Health has issued a boil water advisory for the residents of Braun’s Island, Old and New Remo.

This is a precautionary boil water advisory for community water systems downstream of Terrace. The advisory affects community and private water systems that depend on wells for their drinking water, and includes approximately 100 households.

Until further notice, residents should bring their drinking water to a rolling boil for one minute. Residents can also use unscented household bleach to disinfect their water by using one drop of bleach for each litre of clear water. If the water is heavily contaminated, the water may be disinfected by adding 2.5 ml (1 tsp) of bleach to each litre of water. Residents should let the water stand for 30 minutes after treatment before drinking.

The advisory is due to an emergency sewage discharge into the Skeena River from City of Terrace sewage lagoons. The Ministry of Environment authorized the discharge to maintain the integrity of the lagoons.

Northern Health also advises rigorous hand-washing for residents in the affected areas and as a general preventive health measure. Hand washing with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds will greatly reduce the risk of any illness that might occur following contact with contaminated water. 

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