Empty shelves are seen at a grocery store while a shopper looks for water as residents living in the Halifax region are being asked to boil water for one minute before consumption on Tuesday, July 2, 2024. A boil water advisory throughout parts of the Halifax Regional Municipality, following the release of a limited amount of unchlorinated water into system, has been lifted. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese
HALIFAX – A boil-water advisory has been lifted for more than 200,000 people living and working in Halifax and the surrounding area.
Halifax Water issued the advisory Monday evening, when the utility said an internal electrical problem at the Pockwock Lake water treatment facility allowed a limited amount of unchlorinated water to enter the system.
Regional medical officer Dr. Monika Dutt said the advisory was “precautionary,” adding that testing since then has found no traces of viruses or bacteria.
The utility issued a statement Wednesday morning advising residential and commercial customers that all appliances that store water should be flushed for ten minutes. As well, Halifax Water said any ice cubes made during the advisory period should be thrown out.
Water is now safe for all customers served by the Pockwock Lake facility, the utility confirmed.
On Tuesday, grocery stores in the Halifax area reported running out of bottled water and hospitals said they were washing patients with waterless bath products.
Affected communities included the Halifax peninsula, Beaver Bank, Middle and Lower Sackville, Hammonds Plains, Bedford, Timberlea, Spryfield, and Herring Cove.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2024.
