Water is the foundation of life, and as such, water preparedness is one of the most important aspects of being prepared. That said, many are not prepared for even 1 day of water rations. Moreover, there are many who feel that storing water is a waste of time; after all, they can simply use tap water or step outside and use the water left over from storms and floods.
What they do not realize is that following a severe storm, hurricane or tornado, water is contaminated and should not be used for drinking. Flood waters are contaminated with oil, gasoline, or raw sewage which can infest city water sources and cause a number of medical issues.
It is a Fact That Hospital Visits Increase Following a Short Term Emergency
In fact, when short term emergencies occur, there is an increased number of hospital visits and admissions from common diarrheal diseases, acute respiratory infections, dermatitis, and other causes. These type of medical issues are due to those coming in direct contact with contaminated flood waters. These contamination factors will cause irritation to skin and a host of other medical issues. If ingested, this tainted water can cause a host of medical related issues including but not limited to:
- Protozoan cysts (Cryptosporidium parvum, Giardia lamblia)
- Parasitic (Guinea worm, schistosomiasis, amebiasis, cryptosporidiosis (Crypto), and giardiasis)
- Bacterial (Escherichia coli, or E. coli, Salmonella, Campylobacter jejuni, Yersinia entercolitica, Leptospira interrogans and many others)
- Viral infections (hepatitis A, rotavirus, enterovirus, norovirus, Norwalk virus)
Learn the Valuable Skill of Purifying Water
To avoid water-related illnesses, it is imperative to learn how to filter your water using materials available to you. Here are three ways of purifying water for drinking. These are also great projects to do with children to teach them this valuable skill.
1. Homemade Water Filter
When you begin to filter water from lakes, rivers and groundwater, there are 4 steps to keep in mind:
1. Coagulation: removes dirt, metals and other particles suspended in water. Chemicals like Alum are added to the water that form sticky particles called “floc” which attract the dirt particles.
2. Sedimentation: the combined weight of the sediment and chemicals stuck together become heavy and sink to the bottom.
3. Filtration: smaller particles are removed as water passes through a series of filters (sand, gravel, charcoal)
4. Disinfection: to kill bacteria or microorganisms found in the water, a small amount of chlorine is added.
Materials You Will Need: