City Issues Partial Lift of Boil Water Advisory East of Garden City; West of Garden City Still Under Boil Water Advisory

SAVANNAH – The City of Savannah has issued a partial lift of the boil water advisory for areas of the City of Savannah and Chatham County that are east and south of Garden City.

Areas where the water boil advisory has been lifted are reflected in green on the attached map and include downtown Savannah, westside Savannah neighborhoods, eastside Savannah neighborhoods, midtown Savannah neighborhoods, southside Savannah neighborhoods, Hutchinson Island, Thunderbolt, Vernonburg, and the Savannah Industrial River Corridor.

Tests for these areas of the system showed no presence of coliform bacteria and the water is safe to consume. 

The boil water advisory remains in effect for The Highlands and the Savannah Hilton Head International Airport area of the City of Savannah, Pooler, Port Wentworth, areas of Bloomingdale, portions of unincorporated Chatham County, areas of Effingham County, and Prosperity Drive in Garden City.

Water customers on Whitemarsh Island, Wilmington Island, Dutch Island, Skidaway Island, Tybee Island, Georgetown-Gateway, Bloomingdale areas at I-16 and Bloomindale Road, Ottawa Farms Industrial Park areas, and customers along Little Neck Road and Highway 204 west of I-95 were not affected by the advisory and water in these areas are still safe to consume.

The attached map shows areas lifted from the boil water advisory in green and areas that remain under a boil water advisory in yellow. Areas not impacted were in the unshaded area of the map. The partial lift came after testing on Saturday confirmed no presence of coliform bacteria for areas in green.

Test results for the areas still under the advisory are pending due to the time water takes to travel through the system to these areas. Coliform bacteria test data for the areas still under the boil advisory will be available Sunday morning.

City staff will continue to test water samples through Sunday morning to confirm safe usage and will coordinate with Georgia Environmental Protection Division on the data.

Customers in the affected areas are advised to boil water intended for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, and preparing baby formula until the advisory is lifted. Water should be brought to a rolling boil for at least one minute before use.  

Customers should continue to boil their water until they are notified by public health or their drinking water utility that the water system has been restored to full operation and the water is safe to drink.

To properly boil water:

• Fill a pot with water.
• Heat the water until bubbles come from the bottom of the pot to the top.
• Once the water reaches a rolling boil, let it boil for at least 1 minute.
• Turn off the heat source and let the water cool.
• Pour the water into a clean container with a cover for storage.

Updates will be provided as more information becomes available at savannahga.gov/wateradvisory. 

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More Information

The City’s Industrial & Domestic (I&D) Water Treatment Plant (WTP) processes approximately 50 Million Gallons Per Day (MGD) of water drawn from Abercorn Creek. The I&D plant processes the water through a carefully regulated process to produce potable water which is then distributed to customers.  The process to create potable water includes the addition of aluminum sulfate (alum), a coagulant that binds particles in the water causing them to separate and be more easily removed. Calculations are performed by plant operators during the treatment process to determine the optimal amount of alum needed to treat the water. Operators monitor the process by checking the turbidity state, which is the condition or quality of opaqueness due to presence of suspended particles.