State and Federal water quality regulations require that the public be properly notified of any situation that might jeopardize the safety of the public water supply. The most common notification is the “BOIL WATER ADVISORY”. These notices are generally issued when the water pressure serving customers has dropped enough that there is a concern that outside contaminants may enter the water system or when water quality tests confirm positive test results for coliform or e coli bacteria. These notices may include the entire customer base, but are usually confined to a small group of customers who were affected by a localized main repair.
Customers affected by a localized pressure drop or other issue will be notified of the boil water advisory affecting them either by direct contact or by written notice delivered to the property. The notice will have instructions on how to respond to the advisory and should answer most questions. The notice is required to remain in effect until two consecutive samples prove that the water is free of any contamination. Each test requires 24 hours to complete, so 48 hours is usually the minimum time period for an advisory.
If a system wide advisory is required notices will be sent to all local and near local news media outlets as well as appearing on this and the main City of Columbus websites.