After a natural disaster, such as a hurricane or flooding, the quality of your fresh water source may be compromised by water toxins. These disasters expose and contaminate ground, surface and drinking water supplies with a variety of elements including toxins, chemicals, and septic waste. The rains caused by hurricanes can damage the water quality for those well outside of the floodwater area. Any standing water remaining from flooding, run-off, or heavy rain becomes a breeding ground for toxins like microorganisms and bacteria.
Types of water toxins:
One of the major water toxins as the result of flooding is blue/green algae, also known as Cyanobacteria. This algae grows quickly in calm, nutrient-rich waters and produce toxins that can be harmful to animals and humans. Cyanobacteria can cause a range of symptoms including skin irritation, fever, sore throat, stomach cramps, vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, and muscle and joint pain.
Water that has been contaminated by sewage or animal waste will have E. coli present, as sewage contains many types of disease-causing organisms. If water that has E. Coli present in it is ingested, symptoms usually appear within two to four days. Symptoms include severe diarrhea, abdominal cramps, nausea and vomiting.
Water Toxins Treatment:
If you have experienced flooding of any type, you should have your water tested before consuming any. If any contaminates are found in your water supply, you should wait until the water company has treated and re-tested the water before drinking or using any.
If you are not on a public water supply, you will need to treat your water system on your own. Contact a local water company, the state health department, or your insurance company to get a recommendation for a well qualified water treatment company. The water treatment company will send a representative out to test and treat your water supply. Do not consume, or use, any of the water until they have certified it as contaminate free.
