Some water customers in Monterey County advised to boil water

MONTEREY COUNTY, Calif. –

Cal-Am is advising its customers in the Garrapata service area to boil water before use, or to use bottled water to avoid stomach or intestinal illness.

The advisory released this afternoon says the safety precaution is necessary, “due to a power outage and resulting emergency water outage in our Garrapata system.”

Cal-Am says it has 30 customers in the water district in Monterey County that is off Highway 1, south of Carmel Highlands and south to Rocky Point Restaurant.

Catherine Stedman, Community Manager for CalAm, says it’s her understanding that the power outage is connected to the Soberanes fire, north of Big Sur. The wildfire is now in its 5 th day.

Customers are advised to boil water for one minute and let it cool before using, or use bottled water. NSF-approved water disinfection tablets may also be used.

Cal-Am expects to resolve the problem within 30-48 hours after tests confirm the water no longer contains bacteria.