Health department issues boil-water notice for entirety of Ocean Springs

Gulf Live - 6/24/2021

OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi — Local residents are accustomed to having the beaches closed due to contaminated water, with closures in 2017 for a broken sewer line and 2019 due to an algae bloom.

Wednesday, however, brought water news of a different sort.

The Mississippi Department of Health issued a 48-hour boil water notice for all of Ocean Springs after a sample tested by the MDH indicated the presence of E. coli. bacteria.

E. coli. bacteria indicates the water may be contaminated with human or animal waste. Microbes in these wastes can cause short term effects including diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches or other symptoms, according to the health department, and may pose a particular risk to infants, young children and people with significantly compromised immune systems.

The MDH says the presence of E. coli. is typically the result of a problem with the treatment process or pipes which distribute the water.

City officials, however, are blaming the issue on a third-party testing company which used a flawed sample.

“The testing company that did the sampling used a faulty sample that resulted in the rejection,” alderman Mike Impey posted to his Facebook page. “The problem has been corrected and all sample since have come back fine. The city will no longer be using this company for testing in the future.”

Fellow alderman Rob Blackman added that the tap in question is only used for testing and the testing company did not open the tap and let it clear for a few seconds.

In any event, the boil-water notice will remain in effect at least until Friday, affecting about 17,600 customers serviced by the City of Ocean Springs. In addition, a boil-water notice was issued for 3,868 customers of the Jackson County Utility Authority-West, which supplies water to Colonial Estates and the the City of Ocean Springs.

During the length of the notice, the MDH recommends:

Health officials strongly recommend all water be boiled virgorously for one minute before being consumed. City water system officials will be notified when the alert is lifted.