--- title: Big Flush Begins Today in Alamosa date: 2008-03-24T17:01:00-07:00 author: admin canonical_url: "https://marlerclark.com/news_events/big-flush-begins-today-in-alamosa" section: Case News Additional --- [All News](/news_events) / [](https://marlerclark.com/news_events) / # Big Flush Begins Today in Alamosa ALAMOSA — Chlorinated water will rush through 50 miles of pipes beginning today to try to cleanse salmonella from the municipal water system.As the cleansing reaches their neighborhood, residents will be able to do nothing with the water but flush the toilets until the chlorine dissipates days from now. Even washing hands could cause skin irritation, residents have been warned. About midnight, the city's water tower reached its 500,000-gallon capacity, meaning there is enough pressure to push the chlorinated water through the rest of the neighborhoods in the city of 10,000. Then, chlorinated water from a 300,000-gallon reservoir, as well as well water that is injected with chlorine as it enters the city's system, will be pushed through the web of pipes. Between 300 to 400 houses got the chlorinated water Tuesday. The effort is aimed at killing a salmonella infection that has sickened 251 people. Meanwhile, a Seattle attorney has filed a claim against the city of Alamosa on behalf of a child, James Cook, who he says suffered severe gastrointestinal illness and was hospitalized for five days because of the salmonella outbreak. Seattle attorney Bill Marler, who specializes in food poisoning cases, said today that when a Colorado city is sued, damages are capped at $150,000 for any injured person or a maximum of $600,000 for all injured parties. 'Getting out of Dodge' The water use restrictions were too much for Kathleen Tetwiler and her family, who live in the first neighborhood to receive the chlorine. "We're getting out of Dodge. We're going to Denver," she said. "We're teachers. They canceled school for the rest of the week," she said. "With three little kids, it bothers me to say you can't wash your hands." She plans to make the best of it with her husband and three girls: 7-year-old twins and their 11- year-old sister. "We plan to say in an hotel, go to the zoo and have a good time," Tetwiler said. Her neighbor, Edna Ortega, washed down all her faucets, sinks, tubs and toilets with Clorox wipes and gloves. "You don't realize you need water till you don't have it," she said. She was also surprised by "how automatic it is to just turn on the faucet." Alamosa public works director Don Koskelin said the 25 parts per million solution is strong enough to kill salmonella bacteria in only 3 1/2 minutes. "So we're being really conservative," he said. After the cleansing process is done, the water will be de-chlorinated with a chemical, and then dumped into the storm sewers, which empty into the Rio Grande. Careful watch over pipes Today, Denver Water technicians will be monitoring the cast iron pipes in the older section of town, because the high velocity of water could cause cracking, said Bradley Simons, engineering manager for the water quality division of the state health department. "We want to be very cautious about that." After the decontamination is done, officials said they will bring well water back into the system, gradually diluting the chlorine until people can begin to take showers, and eventually drink it. In the end, which could be days or weeks away, Alamosa's water will maintain a 1 ppm chlorine level, normal for municipal water systems and enough to keep the water safe from recontamination with salmonella, Koskelin said. Officials don't know how or where salmonella entered the water system, which is an unusual deep-well system. It has not required disinfection until now. Most local restaurants are trying to stay open, to earn some money and to rebuild public confidence, said Donna Wehe, director of the San Luis Small Business Development Center. "It's difficult, but they're bringing in ice from the outside, using paper products, using big gallon water containers to prepare food and clean dishes," she said. "They're using more frozen vegetables." But some were using their imaginations. Scott Graber, of the San Luis Valley Brewing Co. restaurant, used his brewing kettles to boil water for the restaurant before the chlorination began. ### Other Lawsuits [70 Sickened by Salmonella Cantaloupe](https://marlerclark.com/70-sickened-by-salmonella-cantaloupe) [Headcheese linked to Listeria illnesses in Illinois](https://marlerclark.com/headcheese-linked-to-listeria-illnesses-in-illinois) [Raw Farms linked to another Raw Milk Cheese E.coli Outbreak - 9 People sickened - Company refuses to recall product](https://marlerclark.com/raw-farms-linked-to-another-raw-milk-cheese-e-coli-outbreak-7-people-sickened) [Salmonella linked to Live it Up hits 97](https://marlerclark.com/salmonella-linked-to-live-it-up) [64 with Salmonella tied to Oysters](https://marlerclark.com/64-with-salmonella-tied-to-oysters) [Vega Farms Salmonella Outbreak Sickens 63](https://marlerclark.com/vega-farms-salmonella-outbreak-sickens-63) [By Heart Infant Formula tied to Botulism Outbreak spikes to 51](https://marlerclark.com/by-heart-infant-formula-tied-to-botulism-outbreak) [Green Supplement causes Salmonella Outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/green-supplement-causes-salmonella-outbreak) [10 with E. coli linked to Cheese](https://marlerclark.com/3-with-e-coli-linked-to-cheese) [Kroger and Walmart Pasta Listeria Outbreak](https://marlerclark.com/kroger-and-walmart-pasta-listeria-outbreak) [Salmonella Outbreak tied to Metabolic Meals](https://marlerclark.com/salmonella-outbreak-tied-to-metabolic-meals) [Giardia Outbreak hits Kentucky - El Tapatio Mexican restaurant suspected as the source](https://marlerclark.com/giardia-outbreak-hits-madisonville-kentucky-el-tapatio-mexican-restaurant-suspected-as-the-source) ### Lawsuit updates about foodborne illnesses [Reactive Arthritis Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=reactive-arthritis&year=all) [E. coli Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=e-coli&year=all) [Guillain-Barre Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=guillain-barre-syndrome&year=all) [Salmonella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=salmonella&year=all) [Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hemolytic-uremic-syndrome&year=all) [Listeria Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=listeria&year=all) [Irritable Bowel Syndrome Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=irritable-bowel-syndrome&year=all) [Hepatitis A Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=hepatitis-a&year=all) [Norovirus Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=norovirus&year=all) [Botulism Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=botulism&year=all) [Campylobacter Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=campylobacter&year=all) [Shigella Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=shigella&year=all) [Cyclospora Lawsuit Updates](/news_events/case-news?illness=cyclospora&year=all) ### Lawsuits updates by year [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1998](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1998) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 1999](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=1999) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2000](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2000) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2001](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2001) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2002](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2002) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2003](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2003) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2004](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2004) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2005](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2005) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2006](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2006) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2007](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2007) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2008](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2008) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2009](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2009) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2010](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2010) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2011](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2011) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2012](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2012) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2013](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2013) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2014](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2014) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2015](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2015) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2016](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2016) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2017](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2017) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2018](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2018) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2019](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2019) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2020](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2020) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2021](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2021) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2022](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2022) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2023](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2023) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2024](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2024) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2025](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2025) [Foodborne Illness Lawsuits in 2026](https://marlerclark.com/news_events/case-news?illness=all&year=2026) ##### Get Help #### Affected by an outbreak or recall? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ Get a free consultation ](https://marlerclark.com/contact) ##### Related Resources ###### [E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli-landing) ... ###### [E. coli Food Poisoning](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-food-poisoning) What is E. coli and how does it cause food poisoning? Escherichia coli (E. coli) is a highly studied, common species of bacteria that belongs to the family Enterobacteriaceae, so... ###### [E. coli O157:H7](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/e-coli-o157h7) E. coli O157:H7 is a foodborne pathogen that causes food poisoning. E. coli O157:H7 is the most commonly identified and the most notorious Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) serotype in... ###### [Non-O157 STEC](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/non-o157-stec) Non-O157 Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli can also cause food poisoning. E. coli O157:H7 may be the most notorious serotype of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC), but there are at least... ###### [Sources of E. coli](https://marlerclark.com/foodborne-illnesses/e-coli/sources-of-e-coli) Where do E. coli O157:H7 and non-O157 Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) come from? The primary reservoirs, or ultimate sources, of E. coli O157:H7 and non-O157 STEC in nature are... ##### Outbreak Database #### Looking for a comprehensive list of outbreaks? The team at Marler Clark is here to answer all your questions. Find out if you’re eligible for a lawsuit, what questions to ask your doctor, and more. [ View Outbreak Database ](https://outbreakdatabase.com)