Procuring Potable Water in a Disaster Scenario

The availability of clean, pure water is vital to survival, but access to this precious commodity can be compromised in many situations. This is especially true when natural disasters strike. As such, individuals are increasingly looking for ways to ensure the availability of clean water. In the absence of clean water, people should educate themselves on how to purify the water that is available to them.

That need has never been greater than it is at present. Natural disasters appear to have been on the increase in recent years. More times than not, the disasters are weather related. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council, global warming is having a significant impact on world climate and weather patterns.  In the United States, the effect of global warming is thought to be responsible for more dangerous — and more frequent — extreme weather conditions. Communities, states and whole regions of the country at one time or another have experienced stronger hurricanes, more intense storms, heavier rainfall, and rising sea levels. Three recent and somewhat frightening hurricanes and tropical storms have highlighted the effects that extreme weather can have on water supply.

•             In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused massive destruction and hundreds of deaths. The hurricane is ranked among the top five deadliest and destructive hurricanes in U.S. history. The Gulf Coast was awash with flood water, but there was a lack of clean water for drinking.

•             In 2011, Tropical Storm Irene caused death and extensive damage in New England and elsewhere.

•             In 2012, Tropical Storm Sandy wreaked destruction on the Eastern Seaboard. In the state of Connecticut, the Department of Public Health recommended boiling water for a significant number of small public drinking water systems.

Given all that, imagine for a moment that extreme weather conditions have brought about a natural disaster, and the nation’s water supply has become contaminated. What steps can you take to ensure a supply of safe drinking water in this disaster scenario? Fortunately, there are a number of purification and filtration systems available to citizens in rural and urban areas.

RURAL AND SEMI-RURAL AREAS

People in rural areas who have their own wells will be able to obtain clean drinking water using an electrical well pump. However, if the power has also been affected by the weather, they will not be able to obtain any water.

People who own wells should anticipate such a likely scenario and install a hand pumps. Heller Aller hand pumps can be ordered from Lehman’s catalog. Heller is just an example of one hand pump you could order but there are other brands for you to choose from.  Homeowners can install the pumps themselves if they feel confident about it. Alternatively, a pump company can be called to undertake the installation. Having hand pumps on wells mean that their owners will always be able to obtain water for drinking, cooking and showering — as long as the well water does not become contaminated.

CITY DWELLERS

In the given disaster scenario, where no mainline water is available, people in urban areas may want to use water run-off from the roofs of their homes. In this case, the water would have to be filtered before consumption. This could be done via a slow sand filtration system. Many people build their own slow sand filtration system, and a number of them post their how-to videos on YouTube. Here is the link to one particular video: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-_RDB3RvSY)

Many important health and safety considerations must be taken into account when building and using a slow sand filter. The following website provides important guidelines — as well as answers to frequently asked questions: http://www.slowsandfilter.org/ssf_faq_mobile.html

PORTABLE PURIFICATION AND FILTRATION PRODUCTS OR SYSTEMS

Many portable systems and products for purifying or filtering water are available on the market today. A portable water purification or filtration system is often referred to as a POU: That is, a point-of-use water treatment system.

They include, but are not limited to:

- Portable pump filters
- Iodine
- Chlorine

They treat water contaminants such as:

- Mercury
- Lead
- Pathogens: bacteria and parasitic worms
- Sewage effluent

All of the above methods are suitable for obtaining water in an emergency or for purifying contaminated water for use at some later date. Once purified, water can be safely stored for up to one year.

How to Store Purified Water

When you have purified water and want to store it, there are certain steps that you should take so that the water will remain safe for consumption:

 

Putting the imagined disaster scenario aside, it is not just during a disaster that Americans might need to purify water for drinking. The following people also need to be prepared:

•             Aid workers who travel to Third World countries, or to industrialized countries that experience natural disasters such as tsunamis and earthquakes.

•             Trekkers/backpackers in countries with questionable water sources.

•             Adventure travelers who might get lost in jungles, etc.

A number of on-the-move survival filters are available. They include:

 

The availability of clean water is generally taken for granted by the majority of people:  It is only when disaster strikes that we are made too painfully aware just how precious clean water really is — and how vital it is to our lives! Clean drinking water is even more important than food, initially. We can survive without food for much longer than we can without drinking water.