Baton Rouge – State health officials have issued an update to conditions of water systems in Louisiana that were seriously impacted by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Boil orders have been lifted for some parish water systems. The boil orders, which were issued after a loss of pressure occurred in those systems, have been lifted since testing showed the water does not contain unsafe levels of bacteria and is safe to drink and use.
Boil orders still remain in effect for other water systems that experienced pressure loss during the hurricane. Customers of these water systems are reminded not to drink, make ice from, brush teeth, prepare or rinse food with tap water unless it has been properly disinfected until further notice. Aside from the specific water systems listed above, health officials are still advising residents to boil water in the following parishes:
For a complete listing of the parish water systems as of Sept. 29, 2005 that have had boil orders lifted and those that still remain under a boil order, please visit www.dhhemergencynews.com.
It should be noted that on the list of water systems that are still under boil order, there are a number of water systems that are noted with an asterisk (*). This indicates that the system is still under boil order because the Office of Public Health has been unable to contact that water system and therefore can not verify water testing results.