COMMUNITY ALERT
September 13, 2017
4:30 pm
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Sarah Henry, Public Information Officer
(510) 747-4714
UPDATE: Water Quality Alert at Alameda Point
4:30 PM UPDATE
Outreach update: Today at 1:00 pm, City staff facilitated a community meeting at Michann’s Theater at Alameda Point. More than 50 community members were in attendance, along with East Bay Municipal Utilities District (EBMUD), the State Water Resources Control Board, Vice Mayor Malia Vella, Councilmember Jim Oddie, and staff from Base Reuse, Public Works, the Police Department, and the City Manager’s office.
Community needs: The City of Alameda has made 10 portable showers available for affected residents. Two of these showers are ADA compliant. Showers are located at the Alameda Fire Department Training Facility at 431 Stardust Place in the parking lot.
For those wishing to contribute to affected residents, they are in need of baby wipes, disposable diapers, and hand sanitizer. These items can be dropped off at the Alameda Point Collaborative, 677 W. Ranger Avenue, and will be distributed by volunteers. The Red Cross is providing bottled water and paper goods.
Do-Not-Drink Water Alert Remains in Place: While water quality continues to improve at Alameda Point, people should refrain from drinking or using tap water for cooking or bathing at Alameda Point, and avoid bodily contact. Water can be used for toilet flushing.
This water quality alert will not be lifted until the State Water Resources Control Board Division of Drinking Water deems the water safe for drinking and bodily contact.
No immediate health threat has been found. If people have health concerns, they should talk to their doctor.
Additional information
Please call our water alert hotline at (510) 747-7460 for additional information. The hotline has received over 100 calls today from concerned community members.
Who is affected by this alert?
The water quality issues are isolated to Alameda Point due to the nature of the non-EBMUD infrastructure. 268 residents and over 60 businesses are affected and each has been notified. This only affects areas west of Main Street. Areas that are not affected include Coast Guard Housing, Bayport, Summer House Apartments, and Atlantic Apartments. The map below outlines the Alameda Point area in red:
What happened?
While field investigations are ongoing, it is likely that the source of the water quality issue is related to a cross-connection between a potable drinking water line and a non-potable irrigation line. Tests were taken at specific locations Tuesday night and we hope to have preliminary results of those tests by Thursday morning. Further testing is being done today, and those results will be available by the end of the week.
Next Update
We will continue to post regular updates with new information as it becomes available.
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