The Chief Environmental Health Officer is advising all residents in Hay River, Enterprise, Kakisa, and K’atl’Odeeche Reserve to boil their drinking water for at least one minute.
This advisory is precautionary in nature and is due to a reoccurrence of higher than normal turbidity (muddy water). There have been no illnesses associated with drinking water reported in the community.
The Chief Environmental Health Officer, in collaboration with the Town of Hay River, will continue to monitor the situation and provide an update when the advisory is lifted.
Be advised that this advisory is issued for precautionary reasons only. All water used for drinking, preparing food, hot and cold beverages, and ice cubes, washing fruits and vegetables, and dental hygiene must be boiled. This is of particular importance in the case of the preparation of infant formulas. Do not drink water from public drinking fountains. It is not necessary to boil water used for other household purposes. You may shower, bathe, or wash using tap water, but avoid swallowing the water.
Alternatives to boiling water include using bottled water or water that has been processed by one of the following methods is acceptable.
- Distillation
- Reverse osmosis
- Filtered using a filter size of 1 micron absolute or less
The advisory also notes that “Brita” type drinking water filters, which use activated carbon filters, are not a safe method for treating water during a Boil Water Advisory. They do not disinfect the water.
