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8.7 Million People Under Boil Water Notices In Texas

One week after winter storms triggered boil-water notices in Texas, more than 8.7 million people are still affected. Here, a volunteer loads food and bottled water at a mass distribution site in Del Valle, Texas.
Thomas Ryan Allison
/
Bloomberg via Getty Images
One week after winter storms triggered boil-water notices in Texas, more than 8.7 million people are still affected. Here, a volunteer loads food and bottled water at a mass distribution site in Del Valle, Texas.

Some 8,707,769 people remain under boil water notices in Texas, as utilities struggle to get water pressure back up to safe levels in the wake of catastrophic winter storms and record cold temperatures.

The 8.7 million figure is a sharp drop from the more than 12 million people who were under boil-water notices on Sunday – but it's still roughly comparable to the entire populations of states such as Virginia or New Jersey.

Across the state, 1,259 boil water notices remain in effect, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality said on Monday. The extreme cold weather has caused chaos in Texas for more than a week; only 285 boil-water notices have been lifted so far, according to the agency's data.

The state regulator requires water companies to issue a boil-water notice if unsafe conditions arise, such as if water distribution pressure drops below 20 psi, or if a utility's water disinfection equipment cannot function properly. Because of power outages and burst pipes, those conditions have plagued many Texas communities in the past week.

Those conditions must be improved and water samples must be found safe before a boil-water notice can be lifted. Utilities that have rescinded water notices include the large system in Houston, as Houston Public Media reports. The city advised residents to run cold water for a minute to flush their pipes, among other measures.

People who are affected by a boil-water notice should boil water for at least two minutes before it can be used, the Texas environmental commission says. It adds that boiled water should be used for everything from washing fruit to brewing coffee and brushing teeth.

Emergency agencies and utilities are now operating water distribution centers in communities across Texas. As member station KERA reports, many people who live in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and other parts of North Texas are still relying on such outlets for clean drinking water.

The San Antonio Water System planned to shut down its water distribution centers around noon on Monday, citing success in restoring safe water conditions in more than 80% of its service area. On the city's outskirts, large areas north and west remain under boil-water notices, but they're expected to be declared safe later Monday, as member station Texas Public Radio reports.

In Austin, a boil-water notice that was issued on Wednesday is now lifted for many central neighborhoods, but many other parts of the city remain under the restrictions, according to member station KUT.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Bill Chappell is a writer and editor on the News Desk in the heart of NPR's newsroom in Washington, D.C.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.