Louisiana Governor Declares Public Health Emergency for St. Joseph, Recommends Not Drinking Tap Water

— -- Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has declared a public health emergency for the town of St. Joseph after officials discovered elevated levels of lead and copper in several water samples.

"Out of an abundance of caution," the Louisiana Department of Health recommends that residents do not use the town's tap water for drinking or "personal consumption, including making ice, brushing teeth or using it for food preparation and rinsing of foods," the governor's office said in a news release today.

The advisory comes after elevated levels of lead were found in water samples taken from a private residence and the Town Hall, and after elevated levels of copper were found at two other private residences, the governor's office said.

The office added that while initial test results showed "that the instances of elevated lead and copper levels are exclusive to these locations, Gov. Edwards has ordered testing of every household in the town within four weeks."

Meanwhile, the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness (GOHSEP) has released "one month's supply of bottled water" to the town of St. Joseph, it said.

People in the northeastern Louisiana town of about 1,100 residents will be allowed three liters of water per day, the governor's office said. The office added that the bottled water supply is meant to be a "temporary remedy" until a more "permanent source" of water can made available to the town.

St. Joseph "has experienced water problems for years due to the poorly maintained and deteriorating water distribution system,” the governor's office said. "Frequent breaks in the water distribution system provide a potential health risk because of the drop in water pressure."