Residents of the Steep Falls well system, an area of Standish home to about 150 customers, were issued a Do Not Drink water advisory from the Portland Water District from Tuesday, April 1, to Saturday, April 5.

Portland Water District Director of Public Relations and Communications Michelle Clements said that the order meant that, while the water in Steep Falls was still safe for bathing and other non-consumptive purposes, it should not be ingested, used for ice cubes, food preparation, or brushing teeth.

Clements said that in this particular case, the well’s radon aeration equipment had failed, leaving the district unable to treat for radon. Therefore, the drinking water program has issued a Do Not Drink order until they can get the equipment fixed. With the equipment not working, she said that the district was making arrangements to get repairs and test the water, noting that they would wait for the tests to come back before the Do Not Drink order was lifted.

According to Clements, the Maine Maximum Exposure Guideline for radon in drinking water is 4,000 picocuries per liter (pCi/L). Radon levels in the Steep Falls system were at 2,554 pCi/L at the time of the well’s most recent aeration treatment, but can range from 10,000 to 20,000 when untreated. With this in mind, Clements said that, after the aeration equipment failed, the water district did not need to test the water for an exact measurement to know that it was unsafe for consumption.

Clements said that the water district had provided five pallets of Poland Spring water bottles to the Steep Falls Fire Station, and encouraged residents to go to the fire station to pick them up. Speaking to Lakes Region Now shortly after the Do Not Drink order was issued, Clements said that the water district was in contact with suppliers, with the hope of “fast-tracking” the process so that customers would not be too inconvenienced. In the end, the Do Not Drink order was lifted by Saturday, April 5, just four days after it was first issued.

While the Do Not Drink order was still in effect, some residents of Steep Falls took the opportunity to help out their fellow citizens.

Jim Hulit, a member of the Standish Lions Club, along with his wife, Marilyn, gathered water bottles to deliver to their neighbors. Hulit said they had planned to deliver pallets to elderly residents who lacked cars, and thus were unable to come to the fire station to get water themselves. Hulit, who has experience delivering food at Christmas as part of the Lions Club, told Lakes Region Now that he planned to deliver water to at least eight people, and hoped to reach more.

“That’s the type of guy Jim is,” said Kevin Warren, a firefighter at the Steep Falls Station and friend of Hulit.