The City of Melbourne issued a boil water notice on Thursday, August 28, following the discovery of a tainted water sample, positive for E. coli.
When a boil water notice is issued, many people wonder if it’s safe to dine at restaurants.
The answer is yes, as long as strict safety measures are followed by restaurants and their guests.
Marcus Darnell, owner of Chumley’s Depot said, “We are on the Space Coast, we should always be hurricane ready and water safety is part of that. We boil our water and have bottled water on hand for guests.
“We use bottled water as a precautionary, and make sure we have boiled water for all hand-washing. Our dish machine is high chemical,” said Toni Elkhouri, owner of Cedar’s Cafe. “For restaurants that cannot stay open, they need to make sure they flush their lines and take precautions for anything that is going to touch food or be ingested by any human before reopening.”Looking for a free mini puzzle? Play the USA TODAY Quick Cross now.
The Friendly Toast Cafe 2 posted on social media, “For drinks, we’ve got you covered with bottled water, Coca-Cola, Sprite, orange soda, Coke Zero and more. Our commercial dishwasher runs at a blazing 180F, hot enough to kill E. Coli and other harmful bacteria. Our coffee machine reaches 205F, which also guarantees safe, piping hot coffee and tea.”
They are also sourcing ice from local suppliers.
Floridahealth.gov suggests the following guidelines:
- Tap water should not be served. Use only bottled water. Boiled water (at a rolling boil for one minute) may be used. Disconnect drinking fountains and soda machines.
- Bagged ice can be used. Ice produced in ice machines should not be used and machines not restarted until after the notice is lifted and machine is emptied and cleaned.
- Use bottled water for handwashing. Use sanitizing solution after washing. Single use gloves may be used.
- Food equipment, utensils and food-contact surfaces may be cleaned with steam, with no additives, a sanitizing mix of bottled or boiled water and bleach or approved sanitizing solution.
- Do not use tap water for food processing and preparation, use only bottled water.
- Manually wash, rinse and sanitize dishes, food equipment and utensils using bottled water from an approved source. Whenever possible, use single-service items.
- Mechanical dishwashers can be used to remove food residue and debris, but must be followed by the guidelines as described above.
The full boil water guidelines can be found at Floridahealth.gov.
This situation is expected to be resolved within 48 hours, which would likely be sometime on Saturday, Aug. 30, but wait for official notice from the city.
Source: Florida Today
