As residents return home to the South Slave, residents with water holding tanks for drinking water in the community are reminded to take some precautionary measures to ensure safe drinking water.
Residents in Hay River, KFN, and Fort Smith are reminded to drain water in their holding tanks and request a refill of fresh treated water, and flush all water lines with fresh water for 15 minutes.
The notice applies to any commercial or private facility which utilize water holding tanks for drinking water.
The GNWT says the advisory is only precautionary due to the risks of standing drinking water for over four weeks. Additionally, the GNWT has not reported any illnesses associated with drinking water in the community.
Despite the lack of waterborne illness reported in the municipalities, the GNWT Department of Health and Social Services says boiling, filters, reverse osmosis or any other method of treatment are not acceptable alternatives to replacing the water in holding tanks.
