Image: Irinayeryomina / Dreamstime / The City of Mission has issued an urgent boil water advisory for the Ruskin Water System northwest of the municipality, west of Hayward Lake.

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Boil water advisory

City of Mission issues boil water advisory

Oct 24, 2024 | 9:07 AM

MISSION — The City of Mission has issued an urgent boil water advisory for the Ruskin Water System northwest of the municipality, west of Hayward Lake.

In a statement from the municipality, the City of Mission says the advisory went into effect Wednesday afternoon (Oct. 23) due to elevated turbidity levels in the source water, thereby reducing the effectiveness of the local treatment system. It’s not known exactly how many residents are affected by the advisory.

Turbidity is defined as a measurement of how cloudy the water is within a lake or river, according to the Government of Northwest Territories. Elevated levels of turbidity can be attributed to silt, mud, algae, plant pieces, melting glaciers, sawdust, wood ashes or chemicals in the water.

The City of Mission says it has activated its Emergency Operations Centre to coordinate the response in Ruskin, adding that the Ruskin Water System contains elevated turbidity levels in excess of 5 NTU (Nephelometric Turbidity Unit) according to sample results dated Wednesday, October 23, 2024. The Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality recommends that customers be notified if the turbidity is more than 1 NTU in the drinking water.

Image: City of Mission / Map showing the area of the Ruskin Water System, northwest of Mission.

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The City of Mission says people should not drink their household water without boiling or otherwise treating the water. Residents have been asked to boil water for one minute (rolling boil), preferably using a kettle to minimize the risk of burns. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, washing ready-to-eat foods and washing dishes. Residents are urged to store treated water in sanitary containers and keep it refrigerated.

The City of Mission says heavy rains over the weekend fell into a creek feeding Hayward Lake, causing heightened levels of turbidity near the intake of the Ruskin Water System. The city says it is working with Fraser Health Authority to investigate and resolve the matter, and is monitoring the levels of turbidity, sampling and testing the raw and treated water levels until levels have dropped to a safe drinking level. The city will notify residents when the issue has been corrected and tests reveal no bacteria.

Residents with questions can contact the City of Mission public works division at 604-820-3761, or Fraser Health at 604-870-7903.