Stream of worries for affected residents

George Kravatz was up early Thursday and fetched his usual morning glass of water from his kitchen faucet.

But then, Kravatz, 85, of North Valley Stream got a phone call from a friend, warning him that his community was one of seven in Nassau County under a directive to boil its drinking water. He had already drained his glass.

"I take a lot of pills, so I need water," Kravatz said as a pot of water boiled on his stove later Thursday.

He didn't seem to think one drink from the tap would harm his health. "If it hasn't affected me yet, it shouldn't affect me," Kravatz said.

But Kravatz said he would rely on boiled and bottled varieties until further notice. The same friend who told Kravatz of the directive brought him some bottled water late Thursday morning, he said.

About 22,000 households and businesses -- about 100,000 residents -- in North Valley Stream, Elmont, Floral Park, Franklin Square, New Hyde Park, Stewart Manor and Garden City are under a boil-water warning after routine tests revealed E. coli and other coliform bacteria, said the Water Authority of Western Nassau County.

The directive won't be lifted until Friday at the earliest, health officials said.

A spokeswoman for the utility said workers are going door to door in the communities, leaving pamphlets warning of the water alert. Local officials said they are also trying to alert residents.

Hempstead spokesman Michael Deery said the town has posted warnings at public fountains and parks and also have notified residents in senior apartments that are served by the water supplier. He said officials are confident the water supplier "will address the problem quickly and efficiently."

Floral Park officials have turned off drinking fountains and are offering water bottles to parkgoers. The Floral Park Pool remains open.

In the Village of New Hyde Park, officials have posted the contaminated water warning on its electronic bulletin board outside village hall and also plan to post it on the village website, Village Clerk Cathryn A. Hillmann said.

Shahid Khan, 58, of North Valley Stream, said leaving pamphlets in mailboxes wasn't the most effective way of alerting residents. He worried that the wind might blow some into yards, where they could be missed, or that people would toss the pamphlet before reading it.

"Maybe a sticker on the door would be better," he said.

Bobby Mason, 68, also of North Valley Stream, agreed that leaving a pamphlet was not the most effective way of spreading the word.

"I think it's terrible," he said. "Every time you want water, you've got to boil it."

Khan's wife, Narghis Khan, 56, sent out her husband for bottled water early Thursday and also said she will boil water.

"But it's a lot of work to boil it and a lot of time," she said.

She also said she was worried about her grandchildren who visit. "I want to keep them safe."

With Gary Dymski