title: Microbial water quality risks to public health: potable water assessment for a flood-affected town in northern Pakistan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  In mid-July 2010 flash flooding in Pakistan destroyed the basic water, environmental sanitation and livelihood infrastructures in 82 districts. Two months later, the local press of Swat (northern Pakistan) reported that several residents of Marghazar town became ill and were hospitalized after drinking contaminated water. A non-governmental organization (Oxfam GB) team took action to determine the causes of this incident and analyzed the community drinking water supply.
  
  
  METHODS
  Standard methods were used to analyze six physio-chemical and four microbiological water quality parameters at five selected sampling locations in the water supply system.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The samples from sites numbers (SN)02, 03, 04 and 05 were found to be microbiologically unfit for drinking due to the presence of Escherichia coli, Shigella, Salmonella and Staphylococcus aureus (range 18-96 ± 14 cfu/100 mL). However, the pH, conductivity, total dissolved solid, total hardness as calcium carbonate and nitrate as NO3(-2) of all the samples were within WHO permissible limits. Higher turbidities were recorded at SN04 and 05 of 6 ± 0.23 and 9 ± 1.23, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Quantitative results revealed the presence of pathogenic organisms and water quality risk factors due to the damaged water and environmental sanitation infrastructure. Continued water quality monitoring, the application of household based disinfectants, and healthy domestic hygiene practices are highly recommended in similar circumstances.
authors.affiliation: College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, PR China. shamsalibaig@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Shams Ali A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Baig
authors.forename: Xinhua
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Rashid
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Khan
mesh_terms: D002947:Cities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002958:City Planning; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000032:analysis* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000592:standards; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000302:isolation & purification; D055868:Floods; D006801:Humans; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D009391:Nephelometry and Turbidimetry; D010154:Pakistan; D011634:Public Health / Q000592:standards; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D018570:Risk Assessment; D045483:Rivers / Q000382:microbiology; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012475:Salmonella / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012498:Sanitary Engineering / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D012722:Sewage / Q000382:microbiology; D012760:Shigella / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014871:Water Microbiology / Q000592:standards*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000302:isolation & purification
chemical_list: D060766:Drinking Water; D007202:Indicators and Reagents; D012722:Sewage; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical