Havre residents advised to boil water

Havre went under a water boil advisory Friday as cases of a water-borne illness have gone up significantly this year.

Havre Public Works Director Trevor More said this morning that the cause of the illness, a water-borne parasite, has not been confirmed in the water supply and the advisory is just a precaution.

“It’s just an association with the public water supply as a water-borne disease,” he said.

He added that it is an advisory, not a do-not-consume order on the water, and no emergency has been declared.

Mork said the water treatment plant is increasing its chlorination to disinfect the water and increasing its monitoring of the water supply, and flushing out the city water mains to reduce any chance of its containing the parasite, Giardia, which can cause Giardiasis, a diarrheal illness.

Kim Berg, the Hill County Health Department director as well as the county health officer, said this morning that the five-year average for confirmed Giardiasis cases in the county is one per year and the county already has three cases in the first quarter this year.

Because the source of the infections cannot be nailed down, a boil advisory was the best step forward to protect the health of the public, she said.

“The cases are not directly linked to the public water system with confirmation, but we cannot rule it out, and that is why the boil advisory is in place,” Berg said.

“I know that the Havre treatment plant has made adjustments and are doing great work to ensure standards are met,” she added. “ … The city of Havre is working diligently to flush the water system and increase their chlorine residuals within the system to meet DEQs requirements.”

She said the water boil advisory has no end date that she has been told; it all depends on the data sent to the state Department of Environmental Quality.

Mork said the boil advisory is expected to be in place 15 days to 30 days.

He said the flushing of the mains will probably take through the end of June, and will start with outlying areas where less movement of the water is likely.

He asked that people be cautious when driving with crews working near fire hydrants to flush the system.

Havre residents were issued a water advisory March 4 after a contaminant was found in the system, but Mork said at the time, that issue was dealt with and no immediate danger with Havre’s drinking water.

Mork said this morning that the issue leading to the boiling advisory Friday might be related to the March 4 advisory issue, but that is not known.

A release on the advisory said the city was notified by the Hill County Health Department April 12 of the outbreak — three cases — of Giardiasis, and the boil advisory is being issued in an abundance of caution.

The advisory advises people not to drink any water without boiling it first. Bring all water to a boil for at least one minute, and cool before using, or use bottled water of your preference. Boiled or bottled water is advised to be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and food preparation until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water provided by a public water supply.

Giardia infection may be acquired without producing any symptoms, and this is often the case for children. In symptomatic patients, acute diarrhea is the predominate symptom. In some instances, diarrhea may be transient and mild, passing without notice; in others diarrhea can be chronic.

Other symptoms may include abdominal cramps, bloating, flatulence, steatorrhea (daily losses of fat in feces greater than 7 grams), weight loss, and occasional vomiting. Stools may be pale in color, greasy, and malodorous/foul-smelling. Weight loss may be significant. In some patients, symptoms may last for only three or four days, while for other patients, symptoms may last for months or years if untreated. Anyone experiencing one or more of these symptoms should contact their health care provider as soon as possible.

Anyone who has a severely compromised immune system, has an infant, is pregnant, or is elderly may be at increased risk and should seek advice from their health care providers about precautions and methods to reduce health risks with any drinking water.

Increased disinfection of drinking water and flushing to reduce the likeliness of pathogens throughout the distribution system are measures being taken by the City of Havre public water supply.

The City of Havre and the Hill County Health Department will notify people when the Montana DEQ determines that the Havre public water supply has demonstrated consistent treatment that is meeting all water treatment requirements per DEQ Surface Water Treatment Regulation and has rescinded this boilwater advisory.

General guidelines on ways to lessen the risk of infection by microbes are available from EPA’s Safe Drinking Water Hotline at 1-800-426-4791 for those who wish to seek further information beyond this boil advisory notice.