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The Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans (SWBNO), in consultation with the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), has canceled the precautionary boil water advisory for residents and businesses in New Orleans East after bacteriological tests confirmed that water in the area was safe to drink and could be used for personal needs.

Customers who have not used their water supply during this precautionary boil water advisory are advised to flush their internal and external plumbing by running water through their system for several minutes.

NEW ORLEANS – On Friday evening, the Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans (SWBNO) issued a precautionary boil water advisory for a limited area of New Orleans East after a driver struck a fire hydrant, resulting in low water pressure in the area bounded by Lake Pontchartrain, Weaver Avenue, Morrison Road and Paris Avenue.

A map of the affected area can be found here.

Residents in the affected area are advised to use bottled or boiled tap water to drink, cook, clean food or brush teeth until further notice. Residents with compromised immune systems should also use safe water to wash hands, shower or bathe.

SWBNO, in partnership with the Louisiana Department of Health, issues boil water advisories out of an abundance of caution for areas where water pressure drops below 20 pounds per square inch (psi).

Customers in other areas of the city are not affected and do not need to boil their water.

Continue to prevent the spread of COVID-19 during a boil water advisory by washing your hands often with boiled or bottled water.

Healthy adults should take the following precautions:

  • Washing hands: Use soap and tap water, dry hands, then apply hand sanitizer; the safest option is to wash with bottled or boiled water.
  • Showering or bathing: Be careful not to swallow any water. Infants, young children and disabled persons should be supervised to ensure water is not ingested. Residents with open wounds, chronic illness or weakened immune systems should use boiled or bottled water to bathe until the advisory is lifted.

SWBNO will notify residents when the boil water advisory is canceled. If you have any questions, please call 52-WATER (504.529.2837).

INSTRUCTIONS FOR BOILING WATER

Bring water to a rolling boil in a clean container for a full minute. If the water has a flat taste afterward, shake it in a bottle or pour it from one container to another.