UPDATE Falls Church Water: Water Boil Lifted

Update Monday 3:06 p.m.:

According to Falls Church Water, the Boil Water Advisory for Falls Church Water customers in Tysons Corner, Vienna, and Dunn Loring has been lifted. Customers no longer need to boil or treat tap water for drinking or cooking. Two rounds of bacteriological testing were performed as advised by the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and came back negative. At no time did the Falls Church Water Utility have evidence of harmful substances in the water. The Advisory was released out of an abundance of caution.
 
The Falls Church Water Utility customers have not been placed in any health risk over this event, due to the rapid and tireless response by the City of Falls Church Water Utility and its partners.

Update Monday 6:55 a.m.

Here is a map of the affected area for the water boil advisory.

Update - At 4:30 p.m. Sunday, the Fairfax County Emergency Blog reported the boil water advisory has expired for Merrifield, but it continues for Tysons, Dunn Loring and Vienna. Residents in those areas should be prepared to boil water through at least Monday night, possibly longer.

All of the pumping stations are back to full power.

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Falls Church Water is advising customers in portions of Tysons Corner, Vienna, Dunn Loring and Merrifield to use bottled water for drinking and cooking purposes or boil tap water before drinking.

Failure to follow this advisory could result in stomach or intestinal illness, according to a release from Susan Finarelli, spokeswoman for the City of Falls Church.

The city released this statement as to why the water company is asking for people to first boil water or use bottled water:

“This precaution is necessary due to a drop in water pressure in the Tysons and Vienna area of the City water system on Saturday afternoon. Low water pressure can potentially allow contaminants to enter into water pipes. The City's pump stations have been operating on back-up power since Friday evening, when a line of thunderstorms caused the broadest non-hurricane related power outage in Virginia history. The City, in conjunction with the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), has analyzed all courses of action, and has opted to aggressively protect the interest of our customers in issuing this boil advisory. The City's robust back-up generating capacity is now restoring water pressure to acceptable levels, however customers are advised to take appropriate precautions in light of the temporary drop in water pressure earlier today.”

Details on boundaries of boil water advisory area

• When in doubt if you are in the affected area, use the methods above to boil or use liquid bleach. (Follow all directions above.)

• Eastern boundary of area: Beginning on the intersection of Magarity Rd. and Olney Rd.; following Magarity Rd. to the intersection with Rte 7; continuing east along Rte 7 to the intersection of I-66.

• Southeast boundary of area: Follows I-66 to the intersection of I-495.

• Southern boundary of area: Beginning at the intersection of I-66 and I-495 and follows along Cottage St. to Gallows Rd., north along Gallows Rd to Cedar Ln. West along Stonewall Dr. to Villanova Dr., then south along Villanova Dr. to Winder St., then west along Winder St. to Drexel St.

• Western boundary of area: Along the Town of Vienna line.

Boil Instructions

Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, beverage and food preparation, and making ice until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water. Boiling is the preferred method to assure that the tap water is safe to drink. Bring all tap water to a rolling boil, let it boil for one (1) minute, and let it cool before using, or use bottled water.

More Resources for Information

Additional information and resources regarding boiling water is available online through the Virginia Department of Health [http://1.usa.gov/KTMw3z] and the Virginia Department of Emergency Management [http://bit.ly/Mz109m.]