Water boil order issued for more than 2 million in Houston

HOUSTON (AP) — More than 2 million people in the Houston area were under a boil order notice Monday after a power outage caused low pressure at a water purification plant, officials said.

John Beezley, of Bonham, buys cases of water after learning that a boil water notice was issued for the entire city of Houston on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022, at Walmart on S. Post Oak Road in Houston. Beezley just arrived in town with his wife, who is undergoing treatment starting tomorrow at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, where they are staying in a camping trailer. They turned on the television after settling in and saw that a boil water notice had been issued. Beezley decided to go out immediately fearing that by tomorrow people would be buying up all of the available water. (Mark Mulligan/Houston Chronicle via AP)

The order means water must be boiled before it’s used for cooking, bathing or drinking. Multiple Houston area public and private schools, as well as some local colleges, were closed Monday as a result of the notice, while others made adjustments to provide affected campuses with bottled water and sanitizer. The warning was issued Sunday after a power outage at a water purification plant, the city’s public works department said.

Water is stocked at Walmart after a boil water notice was issued for the entire city of Houston on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022, at Walmart on S. Post Oak Road in Houston. (Mark Mulligan/Houston Chronicle via AP)

Testing of the water quality was underway, according to Houston officials.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said on Twitter that the city believes the water is safe but a boil order was required because water pressure dropped below the required minimum by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. He said water sampling would begin Monday morning, and the boil order could be lifted 24 hours after the city is notified the water is safe.