Town of Jonesboro Mayor James “Spike” Harris announced that the precautionary Water Boil Advisory put in place on Friday, October 30th for Town of Jonesboro Water System customers has been lifted as of Tuesday, November 3rd.
“We are pleased to announce that on Tuesday, November 3rd, we received notification from the Louisiana Department of Health that the drinking water in the Town of Jonesboro has been deemed safe for consumption and that the precautionary Water Boil Advisory has now been lifted,” said Harris. “We thank the residents affected for their patience and understanding while this was being determined.”
The Boil Advisory was issued after a contractor damaged a water main on Michigan Avenue in Jonesboro. The Town of Jonesboro Public Works Department responded quickly, but residents and businesses had little or no water pressure while the repair was underway.
“I congratulate our Public Works Department on their quick action and professional expertise in getting this line back in operation very quickly,” complimented Harris. “This is the second straight week we have had to deal with an emergency to our water lines, and we are fortunate that our Public Works Department has the expertise to get things back in working order as fast as they did.”
What to do after a boil advisory has been lifted
When a boil water advisory is lifted, you must flush your plumbing lines, discard contaminated ice and food, and clean water-using appliances before consuming the water.
1. Flush Your Plumbing and Taps
- Start from the lowest floor: Open your cold-water faucets and work your way up from the lowest level of your home to the highest.
- Run the water: Let cold water run for 1 to 5 minutes (or until the water feels noticeably colder and runs clear) to flush out stagnant or potentially dirty water from your pipes.
- Showers and tubs: Turn on the hot and cold mix in all showers and bathtubs and let them run for several minutes.
- Outdoor spigots: Disconnect any garden hoses and open outdoor spigots for about 5 minutes.
- Discard Ice, Water, and Stored Drinks
- Throw away ice: Empty your refrigerator’s ice maker, along with the next 3 to 5 batches of ice produced, to clear the internal lines.
- Wipe the ice bin: Clean and sanitize the ice bin using a solution of 2 tablespoons of unscented household bleach per gallon of water, then let it air dry.
- Water dispensers: Flush refrigerator water dispensers and water coolers by running at least 1 quart to 5 minutes of water through them.
- Food and formula: Throw away any food, drinks, or ice made with tap water during the advisory period.
- Flush and Reset Appliances
- Dishwashers: Run your dishwasher empty on a hot or sanitize cycle.
- Water softeners: Run your water softener through a full regeneration cycle.
- Water filters: Discard and replace any point-of-use water filters (such as refrigerator filters, under-sink filters, or pitcher filters like Brita/PUR) that were used during the advisory