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water taken on board is muddy or cloudy, and if necessary you must warn
persons drinking the water that no harm can arise from the taste. As a
general rule, however, all taste and smell arising from the powder
disappears within an hour or two of purifying,
Foreigh ships and Coasting vessels. In the case of these vessels,
the latter certainly, and the former probably, do not carry a supply
of chloride of lime and it will be necessary, therefore, to supply the
bleaching powder or liquid hypochlorite and to carry out the process
yourself in conjunction with the Master or Chief Officer, For this
purpose the Metropolitan Water Board will deliver to your Office this
morning a carboy containing liquid sodium hypochlorite, two or three
Winchester flasks in their baskets to enable you to carry the necessary
quantity to the ship, and a funnel and measure.
The procedure is the same as for the use of bleaching
powder but the quantity to be used is as follows:
1 pint for each 12,500 gallons or proportionately.
Water Barges taking fresh water from hydrants in the docks or at a
wharf should be stopped doing so since it is not possible to supervise
chlorination repeatedly. Such barges should be informed that they
may only take water from hydrants on the South Side of the .River or
from points outside a reach on the North Side stretching from Tower
Bridge to Barking.
In addition to either supervising or carrying out the
chlorination of water in these four categories of vessels and in the
manner described above, you should also warn the Officer in charge
that it would be as well to boil the water before use for drinking
purposes; not only will this be a double measure of safety but it
will secure that any excess of chlorine that will remain in the water
is boiled off and will avoid any taste in beverages, such as tea, etc.
You should also strongly advise that no more water should be taken on
board for drinking purposes than is necessary to reach the first
appropriate port of call for replenishments.
In using either the powder or the liquid chlorine care
should be taken to see that if two or more tanks are in parallel, each
tank should receive its own appropriate dose of chlorine in order to
secure an even distribution and that the total chlorine should not be
put into one tank only, which would have the effect of creating
unequal concentrations in the various tanks connected in parallel.
If there is any possibility of the engine room supply being
linked with the drinking and domestic supply - both supplies should be
chlorinated.
Arrangements have been made through the Port of London
Authority whereby the Dock Superintendents concerned are to notify you
of all ships that propose to take on water to enable you to carry out
the above-mentioned measures.
Finally the precautionary measures apply also to water used
in the docks for domestic purposes and you should warn all concerned
that all such water should be boiled before use for drinking.
The chlorination of ships' drinking water should be
regarded as a requirement of the highest priority and the contamination
will probably be present during the next fortnight or even longer.
Please get into touch with this office if you require
further supplies of hypochlorite.
(Sgd) M.T.MORGAN.
3. Number of water boats and their sanitary condition -
There were eleven water boats working in the Port during
the year. Water boats are all of steel construction and of the
'single skin' type, i.e., the skin of the boat forms the sides and
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