Monday, November 19, 2007

Drinking Water and Emergency Preparedness

During an emergency or natural disaster, the water supply to your home may be stopped or become undrinkable due to contamination. As a result, you may need to be able to provide your own drinking water until your regular water supply is restored and deemed safe for consumption.

Alternative Drinking Water Sources

There are actually many potential sources of water in emergency situations. In addition to any bottled water that you have on hand, drinking water can be obtained from ice cubes or canned goods. Even rain water or the water in your hot water tank or the toilet's water storage tank (not the bowl), can be used in an emergency situation if purified through boiling. Water from waterbeds or swimming pools should not be used, as the water may contain impurities that could be harmful if consumed.

If you have city water, some water suppliers will recommend that you shut off the water supply coming into your home if the water supply has been contaminated (the shutoff valve is usually near the water meter). The valve can be turned on when water is needed for non-potable water requirements, such as flushing toilets.

http://www.nsf.org/consumer/natural_disasters/disaster_water_safety.asp

No comments: