WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — People in three towns southeast of Wichita can stop boiling their water. The cities of Longton, Peru and Grenola have been under a boil water advisory since the end of September.
The Kansas Department of Health and Environment issued the advisory, spanning three counties where more than a dozen water systems had purchased water from the Public Wholesale Water Supply District 20. The KDHE said the water supplier could not maintain the minimum required chlorine residual, which can put the systems at risk for bacterial contamination.
The KDHE rescinds the boil water advisory after the water is tested at a laboratory and is found to be safe. On Wednesday, it ended the advisories for Peru and Grenola. On Friday, it ended the advisory for Longton.
Two water systems are still under boil water advisories:
- Chautauqua County Rural Water District 2
- Elk County Rural Water District 1
Customers in those districts should observe the following precautions until further notice:
- Boil water for one minute before drinking or food preparation, or use bottled water.
- Dispose of ice cubes, and do not use ice from a household automatic icemaker.
- If your tap water appears dirty, flush the water lines by letting the water run until it clears.
- Disinfect dishes and other food-contact surfaces by immersing them for at least one minute in clean tap water containing one teaspoon of unscented household bleach per gallon of water.
- Water used for bathing does not generally need to be boiled. However, children must be supervised while bathing to prevent water from being ingested. Persons with cuts or severe rashes may wish to consult their physicians.
