Breede Valley Municipality (BVM) is calling on residents in all of its towns to boil drinking water.
Also read: Loadshedding: Use less water now
“Due to Eskom’s announcement of stage 6 load-shedding, a boil-water notice is hereby issued to all
towns throughout BVM with immediate effect.”
The officials previously communicated how water and wastewater treatment operations are adversely impacted during higher stages of loadshedding.
Treatment with chlorine to disinfect the drinking water remains, ongoing, however, the residual chlorine in the system is depleted, and disinfection efficiency could decrease during higher stages of loadshedding (5 and above).
As a precautionary measure, all BVM residents must boil their drinking water to ensure it is absolutely safe for consumption.
BVM will continuously test and monitor the quality of the drinking water and will inform residents when the water is safe for consumption to a degree where precautionary boiling is no longer required.
Water boiling requirements
- Boil water for at least 1 minute to use for drinking purposes.
- Let it cool down.
- Store cold boiled drinking water in a clean food-grade container and cover the container.
Alternative disinfection method for water
- Household chlorine bleach kills most pathogens.
- Do not use scented bleaches, colour-safe bleaches, bleaches with added cleaners or non-chlorine bleach.
- Bleach works best when added to warm water that is about 20˚C (68˚F).
Mix:
- Two drops (0.1ml) of household bleach (about 5.25% chlorine) with 1 litre (4 cups) of water.
- Cover and let stand for 30 minutes before drinking. You should notice a slight chlorine
smell after 30 minutes. If not, add another 2 drops. Let the water stand for another 15
minutes. If the water is cloudy, or colder than 10˚C (50˚F), double the amount of bleach
added. - Cover it and let it stand for 1 to 2 hours before drinking. The longer the treated water
stands the better it works to disinfect. - To reduce the chlorine taste, let the water stand uncovered for a few hours, or pour it back
and forth from one clean container to another several times. If using chlorine tablets,
follow the directions on the package.
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