A major earthquake could make water unsafe for drinking, bathing or washing clothes.
And floods can contaminate drinking water wells.
Contaminated water can lead to illness.
* Do not try to boil or disinfect water contaminated with fuel or toxic chemicals.
* Do not drink alcohol, as it dehydrates the body, which increases the need for drinking water.
Make Your Water Safe by: Boiling: If water is cloudy, allow to settle, then skim the clean water above the sediment.
You can also filter through clean cloth, paper towel, or coffee filter before boiling.
Ensure the filter’s pore size is small enough to remove bacteria and parasites.
After filtering, add a disinfectant such as iodine, chlorine, or chlorine dioxide to the filtered water to kill any viruses and remaining bacteria.
The following are possible sources of water: Water from your home’s water heater tank (part of your drinking water system, not your home heating system).

Montgomery County Environmental Services communications coordinator Brianna Wooten said the water is safe to drink.
Your water is safe to drink.” said Wooten.
The county said certain P-H levels can be a sign of potential contamination, particularly involving lead or copper.
“It could be an indicator for if there are some other issues in the system,” added Wooten.
“It’s important to know we do not have any issues in our system with lead and copper or PH.” This notice was a matter of getting on the same page with the Ohio EPA determining PH values.
Environmental services said PH values can fluctuate.
“It varies throughout the system and actually varies what Dayton provides to us because they are a water provider,” added Wooten.
However, some Montgomery county residents didn’t think twice about the notice because they still don’t trust the water.
I don’t drink the water anyway.
“There’s nothing wrong with the PH levels currently in the water, nothing wrong with the testing right now,” said Wooten.

NEW DELHI (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Weak infrastructure and a national shortage have made water costly all over India, but Sushila Devi paid a higher price than most.
It is alright for bathing and washing the dishes.” Water pollution is a major challenge, the report said, with nearly 70 percent of India’s water contaminated, impacting three in four Indians and contributing to 20 percent of the country’s disease burden.
“Our surface water is contaminated, our groundwater is contaminated.
See, everywhere water is being contaminated because we are not managing our solid waste properly,” said the report’s author Avinash Mishra.
You fall ill because you don’t have access to safe drinking water, because your water is contaminated.” “The burden of not having access to safe drinking water, that burden is greatest on the poor and the price is paid by them.”
Crippling water problems could shave 6 percent off India’s gross domestic product, according to the report by the government think-tank, Niti Aayog.
To tackle this crisis, which is predicted to get worse, the government has urged states – responsible for supplying clean water to residents – to prioritise treating waste water to bridge the supply and demand gap and to save lives.
Currently, only 70 percent of India’s states treat less than half of their wastewater.
The Yamuna river that flows through New Delhi can be seen covered under a thick, detergent-like foam on some days.
That does not stop 10-year-old Gauri, who lives in a nearby slum, from jumping in every day.

Among the potentially deadly chemicals are perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), which are both used to extinguish aircraft fires.
More than 20 cancer cases have been reported between Satellite and Cocoa beaches in Brevard County, Florida [file photo] The report revealed no testing was conducted off the base located between Satellite and Cocoa beaches in Brevard County – despite a spate of cancer cases in the area.
Concerned residents have been holding meetings to discuss the issue.
Prieto said that she knew of six or seven classmates from Satellite High School who were also diagnosed with uncommon cancers when she was diagnosed but that she now knows of about 20 in total.
‘We could all be linked because of this common source and from there it’s just, it’s amazing how many stories we have now,’ she told ABC news.
‘It’s alarming, it’s very alarming, and the information that’s come out in these citizen meetings, it’s eye-opening.’
Experts analyzed samples taken from the water near Florida’s Patrick Air Force Base and Cape Canaveral Air Force Station [file photo] And there are fears worried that several schools in the area may be contaminated with the affected ground water.
‘As the mother of two beachside students, and a person who grew up in Satellite Beach and was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2010, I have many of the same questions and concerns as our community,’ said school board member Tina Descovich.
These tests are important for our peace of mind and I look forward to receiving the results.’
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the chemicals have also been known to cause birth defects, liver damage, thyroid damage, increased uric acid levels, increased cholesterol and damage to the immune system.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – NewsChannel 5 Investigates first revealed that, as part of its lead-testing program, Metro Nashville Public Schools utilized a testing method that masks the real contamination problem in its drinking water.
MNPS responded by posting a claim on its website that “EPA VALIDATES METRO SCHOOLS’ LEAD TESTING PROTOCOL.” But our investigation discovered there’s a lot more to the story.
Related stories: MNPS Testing May Have Masked Water Contamination Flint Expert: MNPS Lead Tests Belong In Garbage Back in May, our investigation revealed that the district uses a protocol – called “pre-stagnation flushing” – that essentially washes away the evidence before workers collect water samples.
The top expert from Flint, Michigan, said MNPS’ results “need to be thrown right in the garbage” and the district needs to start over.
Ask Metro Schools, and they’ll point to the EPA’s published guidance for schools that says: “Ideally, the water should sit in the pipes unused for at least 8 hours but not more than 18 hours before a sample is taken.” MNPS has used that one sentence to justify sending crews out to schools to completely flush out the water lines the day before the samples are collected.
Go back to the sentence that MNPS likes to quote.
“However, water may be more than 18 hours old at some outlets that are infrequently used.
If this is typical of normal use patterns, then these outlets should still be sampled.” Later, in that same document where MNPS found the one sentence it likes, EPA says that testing should be “representative of the normal water consumption pattern.” In 2016, after the Flint water crisis, the EPA issued a "clarification" for public drinking water systems that pre-stagnation flushing does NOT represent a best practice.
Therefore, EPA recommends that sampling instructions not contain a pre-stagnation flushing step.” According to emails obtained through a public records request, MNPS spokesperson Michelle Michaud got an Atlanta EPA official to say that Grevatt’s memorandum “does not apply” to schools.
Special Section: NC5 Investigates: Lead in School Water

The base is in Brevard County, where an unusually high number of cancer cases among young people has been reported.
Residents and officials of an east-central Florida county are raising the alarm over a potential link between increased cases of cancer in young people and chemicals detected in the groundwater of a nearby Air Force base.
The report noted that all 28 groundwater monitoring stations on Patrick Air Force Base tested positive for the chemicals.
The report also noted that no testing was conducted off the base located between Satellite and Cocoa beaches in Brevard County, where a cluster of cancer cases among people in their 20s and 30s has been reported.
She is one of 20 or so Satellite High School alumni who graduated around the same time and have been diagnosed with cancer, Florida Today reported.
"We would drink the sprinkler water," Greenwalt said.
Earlier this week, officials with the Brevard County Public Schools said they would be testing drinking water at area schools for traces of the chemicals.
Nearby Cocoa Beach, which treats sewage from Patrick Air Force Base, announced the same.
In addition to cancer, the chemicals are known to cause birth defects, liver damage, thyroid damage, increased uric acid levels, increased cholesterol and damage to the immune system, according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives.

After contamination was found in well water at Cove Point Lighthouse in Lusby in May, Calvert County government said Thursday it found "no detectable traces of diesel range organic compounds," and the contamination is limited to the lighthouse.
In June, county government notified the public that water samples from the lighthouse’s rental facility were found to contain diesel range organics or petroleum hydrocarbon at a level that’s above the state’s reporting standard.
The Maryland Department of the Environment advised visitors to drink bottled water while staying at the facility “out of an abundance of caution” when additional information is collected.
Since the news broke, some nearby residents expressed concern over whether their well water is contaminated as well.
The county said its Department of Public Works’ water and sewerage division staff drew water samples from nine homes in the vicinity and submitted them to an independent laboratory for testing.
"The results indicate the water contamination is limited to the lighthouse property," county government said in a release Thursday.
The contamination at the lighthouse was first identified in a water sample collected by the Coast Guard from the onsite drinking water well on May 8.
The water sample was taken as part of the Coast Guard’s property transfer process as required by federal law.
The well was later retested, and contamination levels were confirmed on May 18.
Under the Coast Guard ownership, the lighthouse site once included several above-ground and underground fuel tanks, according to the release.

Planning to visit the lower American River this holiday weekend?
But they urged using "common sense" precautions because certain stretches of the waterway are contaminated with potentially harmful levels of E. coli bacteria.
Laputz recommended that visitors check the latest E. coli levels on an online map, or by following CA Water Boards on Twitter.
County health officials said they are unaware of any cases of illnesses related to the water’s contamination, but said visitors should be cautious.
The health risk in the American is "no different than in any public waterway," she said.
Laputz said the board’s research of contaminants along the river is in its early stages and has yet to pinpoint the sources of contamination.
"We’ve not identified a trend at this point," Laputz said.. Related stories from Sacramento Bee E. coli outbreak update: It might be safe to buy and eat romaine lettuce again Why raw milk is dangerous and needs to be regulated Warning: Those lipstick samples could be loaded with poop, investigation finds DNA studies and other research will help determine the sources and risks of the E. coli, he said.
The results will help county health officials better gauge the level or risk for people who use the river for recreational activities.
It also will help authorities figure out ways to reduce bacteria levels in the waterway, said Laputz.
Until then, "people need to pay attention to safe habits," including showering after spending time in the river and picking up after pets.

Prieto said that she knew of six or seven classmates from Satellite High School in Satellite Beach, Florida, who were also diagnosed with uncommon cancers when she was diagnosed but that she now knows of about 20 — all at about the same time.
The article reported that wells used to monitor groundwater contaminants at nearby Patrick Air Force Base showed levels of chemicals from military firefighting foam higher than what the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considered safe.
The chemicals found in the groundwater wells at Patrick Air Force Base go by the acronyms PFOS and PFOA.
The EPA’s recommended limit for PFOS and PFOA is specific to drinking water, but the tests at Patrick Air Force Base involved groundwater at the base.
A spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection told ABC News that drinking water systems in Brevard County, which includes Satellite Beach, tested negative for PFOS and PFOA.
But it hasn’t yet done the same for groundwater unless nearby residents were also using it as drinking water.
One of Prieto’s classmates, Julie Greenwalt, was diagnosed with cancer of the appendix two years ago.
Greenwalt said she’s become the face of residents’ concerns that there is a connection between PFAS and cancer, and that since the Military Times article, people have called her at her clinic saying they want to get their own water or blood tested.
And even though PFOS and PFOA chemicals haven’t been used in manufacturing in years, they have been found in groundwater and drinking water systems around the country.
In Satellite Beach, Prieto and Greenwalt are speaking to more than 1,400 residents and past residents about their concerns that groundwater contamination is somehow related to their cancers or cancer in their family.

Prieto said that she knew of six or seven classmates from Satellite High School in Satellite Beach, Florida, who were also diagnosed with uncommon cancers when she was diagnosed but that she now knows of about 20 — all at about the same time.
The article reported that wells used to monitor groundwater contaminants at nearby Patrick Air Force Base showed levels of chemicals from military firefighting foam higher than what the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considered safe.
Prieto is demanding the state find out if the test results and cancer rates among her and her former classmates are connected.
The EPA’s recommended limit for PFOS and PFOA is specific to drinking water, but the tests at Patrick Air Force Base involved groundwater at the base.
A spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection told ABC News that drinking water systems in Brevard County, which includes Satellite Beach, tested negative for PFOS and PFOA.
The science on connections between PFOS and PFOA exposure and cancer and other health problems is also not definitive.
Some research has linked the chemicals to cancer in animals, including a recent government study that found they caused health problems in animals at exposure levels much lower than the EPA’s recommended limit.
Greenwalt said she’s become the face of residents’ concerns that there is a connection between PFAS and cancer, and that since the Military Times article, people have called her at her clinic saying they want to get their own water or blood tested.
And even though PFOS and PFOA chemicals haven’t been used in manufacturing in years, they have been found in groundwater and drinking water systems around the country.
In Satellite Beach, Prieto and Greenwalt are speaking to more than 1,400 residents and past residents about their concerns that groundwater contamination is somehow related to their cancers or cancer in their family.