Boiling water

Odd title for a blog post, right?
But my fellow citizens of Austin will immediately understand.

For six days we were under a boil water notice, due to flooding in the hill country that caused problems with the water filtration system in the city. We could bathe in the water, but not drink it or cook with it. There was some confusion about whether it was safe to run the dishwasher, the washing machine, or even to wash our hands with tap water. We were instructed to hand wash dishes in hot, soapy tap water, then rinse them in boiled or bottled water. Definitely ice machines were out for the duration.

This was a hardship for everyone - individuals, schools, businesses, grocery stores. Restaurants couldn't provide ice or fountain drinks. Some establishments served food in plastic, to-go containers as an extra precaution. Schools covered water fountains and high schools didn't provide a salad bar option. Grocery stores quickly sold out of bottled water, and had to scramble to bring in cases from other locations. People were buying flats of bottled water, not knowing how long the situation would last.

Luckily it was only six days. And that is the point of this post. It was only six days, but people were complaining like it was months. Many had trouble looking on the positive side. At least we could bathe. At least we could boil the water to make it safe. We didn't have to walk miles to a water site, carry jugs for miles, then boil it, and hope it was safe. Yes, grocery stores did sell out of bottled water, so access at times was difficult, but they replenished their stock fairly quickly. And I didn't hear of any price gouging. In fact, one grocery store was selling gallon jugs of water for 78 cents, which sounds very reasonable to me. The city also set up multiple water distribution sites, so low income and people with disabilities didn't have to pay for water. It took a day or two I think before those sites were operational, but at least the city considered people who couldn't pay for bottled water, or who couldn't boil water safely.

It was only six days. We all survived as far as I know. I did hear of a few people coming down with gastrointestinal illnesses, but I don't think it has been determined that tap water was the cause.

It was only six days. Flint, Michigan has been dealing with dangerous water FOR YEARS.

It was an inconvenience. It was a concern. It was a hassle. But we made it through.

It was only six days.

And I now appreciate clean tap water and the city water filtration system.
I don't take it for granted. 

librarianintx