AUSTIN — As of Wednesday afternoon, all Austin Water customers remained under a boil water notice -- and it could last a few more days.
As you wait for the all clear, you may be wondering how bad the health implications may be if you drink water that has not been boiled.
Dr. Ken Mitchell, chief medical officer at St. David's Healthcare, stopped by the KVUE studios to provide some answers.
"The real risk is that you have sediment in the water, you have bacteria in the water, or that you have parasites in the water," said Dr. Mitchell. "So, most of the bacteria are treated by the chlorination process, and most of the parasites are cleared by the filtration process. Because of the lack of clarity or turbidity in the water, that's what has caused the concern about not filtering out the parasites."
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For those who still believe that your water may be safe to drink because it's coming out of the faucet clear, Dr. Mitchell said you still run the risk of coming down with a gastrointestinal illness.
"It's a diarrheal type of illness that you could develop and the symptoms usually develop within a week or so of ingestion," said Dr. Mitchell. "It's not immediate, usually the incubation period is seven to 10 days."
Officials suggest bringing your water to a rolling boil for three minutes and letting it cool before drinking.