Keep boiling your water, if you live near Morristown Airport.
As of Sunday afternoon, July 24, 2016, a water advisory remains in effect for some Morris Township and Hanover residents.
Friday night’s water main break on Columbia Turnpike in the Township has been repaired, but customers should continue following safety instructions–boiling their water before drinking it or cooking with it– until the system is flushed and recharged, according to the Southeast Morris County Municipal Utilities Authority:
“SMCMUA is collecting water quality samples. Pending the absence of any bacteria, SMCMUA will work with NJDEP to assess if the boil water advisory can be lifted. If it cannot, SMCMUA will collect additional samples and continue on the boil water advisory,” the utility said on its website.
A map of the affected area, with specific safety instructions, is here.
To summarize, the utility advises that affected customers should “bring tap water to a rolling boil for one minute and allow the tap water to cool before using, or use bottled water.
“Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking; preparing foods; mixing baby formula, food, juices or drinks; washing vegetables and fruit; cooking; making ice; brushing teeth; and washing dishes until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water,” the SMCMUA advises.
Additionally, the utility urges affected customers to:
- Throw away uncooked food or beverages or ice cubes made with tap water during the day of the advisory;
- Keep boiled water in the refrigerator for drinking;
- Do not swallow water while showering or bathing;
- Rinse hand-washed dishes with a diluted bleach solution (one tablespoon of household bleach per gallon of tap water) or clean your dishes in a dishwasher using the hot wash cycle and dry cycle;
- Do not use home filtering devices in place of boiling or using bottled water; most home water filters will not provide adequate protection from microorganisms;
- Use only boiled water to treat minor injuries;
- Provide pets with drinking water that has been boiled and cooled
“Please continue to boil your water or use bottled water until you are notified that the water quality is satisfactory. This advisory will remain in effect until repairs are completed and testing shows the water quality to be safe,” the utility said on Saturday.
Updates will be posted at the utility website. We will post updates here as well.
