Costly Mistake Affects Drinking Water In Fort Lauderdale

Because of a mistake that affected the drinking water in Fort Lauderdale, FL, authorities advised infants, pregnant women, the elderly, and patients with a “compromised” immune system to caution themselves when drinking tap water.

The incident took place at the Fiveash Water Treatment Plant and because it was not considered an emergency there were no “boil-water orders,” according to the Sun-Sentinel. A non-certified sanitizer, a calcium hypochlorite product, was used during the cleaning of the filters in late April.

The water had High Test Hypochlorite, a white chlorinated powder, that did not meet The National Sanitation Foundation's public health standards, authorities said.

"The standard maintenance procedure was not followed and this sanitizer was inadvertently released into the drinking water," Matt Little, the city's spokesperson told ABC 10 News.

So far, tests have revealed that drinking water standards were not compromised, but the quality of the water might have been affected. Fort Lauderdale first started looking into the incident when it began receiving complaints that the water tasted chlorinated.

Earlier this year, Fort Lauderdale’s aging sewer lines were rupturing “at a record pace,” the Sun-Sentinel reported.

It was only a few years ago that city workers were called out to fix a water main break nearly once every week. The breaks had forced residents and businesses to go hours without tap water from their faucets or toilet water for flushing.

The Sun-Sentinel reported then that boil water advisories were issued for cooking, drinking, and brushing teeth.

"If you look at the ones that are breaking, they are paper thin. They're just old, old, old," Rick Johnson, manager of the city's distribution and collection systems had told the Sun-Sentinel.

The normal life of the underground pipes is 40 to 60 years, depending on the material used, officials had said at the time.

Fort Lauderdale temporarily returned to using free chlorine in its drinking water system beginning in early May and ending in mid-June, according to the Fort Lauderdale Connex. Free chlorination is a common practice for water systems using combined chlorine disinfection.

The chlorination period is anticipated to be unobtrusive to water customers; however, some may notice a slight change in the taste or smell of their tap water.

To read more about chlorine issues visit Water Online’s Drinking Water Disinfection Solutions Center.