Boil water notice rescinded for some barrier islands, water restored in Pinellas County

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) — Pinellas County officials provided an update Thursday morning on recovery efforts just one week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida.

Pinellas County Utilities rescinded the boil water notice for St. Pete Beach, Treasure Island, and Tierra Verde as water quality levels reached a safe level for federal and state standards.

Potable water has been restored, but the pressure may not have returned back to normal. Residents are asked to continue to limit water usage to prevent sanitary sewer overflows.

Sunset Beach on Treasure Island is the only area that remains without drinking water due to sand and debris covering service valves.

“There are also less than 450 properties on the southern barrier islands that are not adequately receiving drinking water due to damage on their private side of the water service line,” the county said. “We will be working with them as they hire licensed plumbers to make the repairs on their private property during this phase of recovery.”

The county said there are roughly 1,556 clean-up crews deployed across the county. More than 73,000 meals, 124,000 bottles of water, 1,600 pallets of tarps, and 5,000 pallets of ice have been distributed to those impacted.

Plans to collect three debris items— vegetative, construction and demolition, and household appliances, have begun in Pinellas County. The county has seen “an unprecedented amount,” with more than 7 million cubic yards of debris from this storm. For additional details, click here .

For residents in unincorporated Pinellas, debris can be disposed of at 13600 Icot Boulevard in Clearwater from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Commerical haulers cannot use this site.

The county is continuing to work to collect sand and move it to a consolidated location, where it can be properly processed, screened, and placed back onto the beaches.

Resources

Residents with questions on the rescinded boil water notice can call Utilities Customer Service at 727-464-4000.

Click here for points of distribution.

To find a food pantry near you, visit FeedingTampaBay.org .

If you or someone you know is struggling during hurricane recovery, please call 1-800-985-5990.

Available housing options, from apartments to rentals, are now up on Pinellas.gov/emergency-information . Unemployment assistance is also available, where employees can submit claims at Floridajobs.org .

To register for FEMA, visit DisasterAssistance.gov or call 1-800-621-3362.

WFLA live streamed the press conference at 10:30 a.m., which can be watched in the video player above.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.