EPA headquarters has released a daily update on environmental conditions in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands and the recovery efforts for clean drinking water. People are dying of thirst in some parts of the islands, and as conditions continue to deteriorate they are becoming more desperate to survive. So desperate that people have begun to drink water from a toxic superfund site.
Pendejo does not see because he does not possess empathy what so ever. The 3.5 million American citizens that are suffering and dying in the Caribbean do not deserve to be treated this way. Exactly when will one of the “adults” in this regime insist on an all out government response to this disaster? They are the only ones that can do it. Time is running out.
There are reports of residents obtaining, or trying to obtain, drinking water from wells at hazardous waste “Superfund” sites in Puerto Rico. EPA advises against tampering with sealed and locked wells or drinking from these wells, as it may be dangerous to people’s health.
EPA has collaborated with FEMA and the Department of Defense on a video documenting our drinking water assessment teams’ work. The video shows EPA teams at sites in Caguas and Yabucoa, Puerto Rico that are without power and need generators to get up and running. EPA is working with FEMA and local municipalities to get the drinking water wells functioning.
snip
Drinking Water and Wastewater Management In USVI, EPA continues to coordinate drinking water sampling with the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Natural Resources. In Puerto Rico, the EPA continues to focus on assessing both drinking water and wastewater systems and continues to work closely with the government of Puerto Rico.
Water Safety Raw sewage continues to be released into waterways and is expected to continue until repairs can be made and power is restored. Water contaminated with livestock waste, human sewage, chemicals, and other contaminants can lead to illness when used for drinking, bathing, and other hygiene activities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), people should not use the water from rivers, streams and coastal water to drink, bathe, wash, or to cook with unless first boiling this water for a minimum of one minute. If boiling the water is not possible, water may be disinfected with bleach. To learn more about making water safe in an emergency, go to CDC’s Making Water Safe in an Emergency web page.
More deadly water. There has been confirmed casualties of leptospirosis contamination.
The disease is not uncommon in the tropics, but the outbreak is elevating concerns about sanitation after the storm hit Sept. 20 and knocked out running water for much of the U.S. territory.
Gov. Ricardo Rossello said at a news conference Wednesday that there have been 10 cases of suspected leptospirosis, four of them fatal. Two of the deaths were in Bayamon, and one each in Carolina and Mayaguez. Other patients have been treated with antibiotics. Rossello said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is also investigating.
Officials have been urging islanders to avoid drinking or bathing in streams and rivers that could be contaminated by floodwaters.
comment by Geema0712 in Denise’s Virgin Island diary
Portable water purification systems should be a priority of FEMA and other relief.
World Vision, a charity I have supported for decades provides them, and I have personally contributed to those.
Here are links:
World Vision Water purification
This is just a suggestion. I have no links to Proctor & Gamble, and my link with World Vision is as a sponsor of children and a donor of extra contributions to emergency situations.
You can designate your donation specifically for PR. Donations are tax deductible.