Giles County under boil water notice after water treatment plant failed testing

Odyssey Fields
·2 min read

GILES COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) — The Virginia Department of Health and Giles County Health Department has issued a boil water notice after a water treatment plant failed routine testing on Feb. 29.

Health officials say residents should use bottled tap water or boil water before drinking and cooking purposes out of precaution until further notice. The department says drinking the water without boiling it can result in stomach or intestinal illness.

Residents are encouraged to let the water boil for one minute and let it cool before using. This process will kill bacteria and other organisms.

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If you can not boil your tap water, the department is encouraging residents to:

  • An alternative method of purification for residents that do not have gas or electricity available is to use liquid household bleach to disinfect water. The bleach product should be recently purchased, free of additives and scents, and should contain a hypochlorite solution of at least 5.25%.  Public health officials recommend adding 8 drops of bleach (about ¼ teaspoon) to each gallon of water.  The water should be stirred and allowed to stand for at least 30 minutes before use.

  • Water purification tablets may also be used by following the manufacturer’s instructions.

  • Potable water is available at the following locations: wherever bottled water is sold

Giles County officials said they are working to fix the problem and are hoping it will be resolved by March 8.

This resulted in the Giles County Public School district holding a virtual learning day on Wednesday. The school district says students will return to school on Thursday, March 7.

School officials said they will also be working to secure cases of water for all school sites. Bottled water will be distributed to each classroom in every school, by the end of the day on March 6 to ensure students have adequate water.

WFXR News will update this story as more details are released.

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