A water line break has lead to authorities advising everyone in portions of Uptown New Orleans to boil their water before ingesting it.
"Water pressures in this area fell below 20 pounds per square inch (psi) due to a break on the 48-in water main near Carrollton Ave and Panola St.," the Sewerage and Water Board advised.
Crews have isolated the break, but the pressure drop requires the boil advisory as a precaution. Water in the area has to be certified as safe and free of potentially dangerous levels of contaminants that can theoretically get in a line during a break.
"SWBNO will notify residents when testing has begun."
Testing generally takes abut 24 hours.
The precautionary boil water advisory is for the following areas:
•Carrollton Ave from I-10 (Pontchartrain Expressway) to Mississippi River
•I-10 (Pontchartrain Expressway) from Carrollton Ave to Mississippi River
•Mississippi River from Carrollton Ave to Pontchartrain Expressway
The SWB issued the following information...
Healthy adults should take the following precautions:
Washing hands: Use soap and tap water, dry hands, then apply hand sanitizer; the safest option is to wash with bottled or boiled water. Showering or bathing: Be careful not to swallow any water. Infants, young children and disabled persons should be supervised to ensure water is not ingested. Residents with open wounds, chronic illness or weakened immune systems should use boiled or bottled water to bathe until the advisory is lifted.SWBNO will notify residents when the boil water advisory is canceled. If you have any questions, please call 504-52-WATER (504-529-2837).
INSTRUCTIONS FOR BOILING WATER
Bring water to a rolling boil in a clean container for a full minute. If the water has a flat taste afterward, shake it in a bottle or pour it from one container to another.
Please review general and LDH recommendations for managing a boil water advisory at ready.nola.gov/plan/boil-water.