(via wormsandgermsblog.com)

At about 5:30 PM this afternoon, Kenyon students were alerted to a boil alert for the Village of Gambier by text message and e-mail.

For those students who may not be aware, a boil alert is a a warning from the government or health authorities, and means that an area’s drinking water may be contaminated with pathogens and should not be drunk. Students should either drink bottled water, or boil their water. Water should be boiled for a full minute in order to disinfect it. Note: filters do not disinfect water. You should not brush your teeth, but you can wash your hands and bathe — just be careful not to ingest any of the water.

As of publication, the College has not issued any notice of why there is a boil alert, or when the alert will end. This article will be updated with new information.

UPDATE [9:00 PM, 4/19]: Peirce staff members got 4000 bottles of water, and have/are in the process of distributing them between the Peirce Hall, the Gund Commons Game Room and KAC Café. They are also boiling water to use tomorrow in Peirce Hall.

UPDATE [10:00 PM, 4/19]: The Office of Communications sent a News Bulletin e-mail to the campus regarding the boil alert. It reads:

A drop in pressure at the Mount Vernon Water Treatment Plant due to a change in well pumps has triggered a boil alert for the village of Gambier, including the Kenyon campus, according to village administrator Suzanne Hopkins. The village received notice about the boil alert at around 5 p.m., and the Kenyon community was informed shortly after. All tap water should be boiled before consumption. Do not consume water from drinking fountains or sink or shower faucets or consume ice from ice machines until further notice. The boil alert advisory may continue until Wednesday, April 20.

The Student Affairs staff and AVI Foodsystems have obtained bottled water, which is available for students at Peirce Hall and the Gund Commons Game Room. AVI and the Kenyon Inn are taking all necessary precautions regarding food preparation.

UPDATE [8:40 AM, 4/20]: Gambier community members are alerted via text alerts and phone calls that the boil advisory has officially been lifted.