Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Surbiton]
This page requires JavaScript
Owing in a great measure to the scare
created by the serious outbreaks of typhoid fever,
due to polluted drinking water, that have occurred
during the past year in two or three different
localities, local sanitary authorities have been
more or less on the alert as to the possibilities of
the contamination of their sources of supply. The
water distributed throughout this area is received
from the Lambeth Water Works and is particularly
good and wholesome; it is the same as that
supplied to a large part of South London including
Brixton, Streatham, Penge, Anerley and all the
intermediate towns and villages along the Southwestern
line as far as and including Esher, and it
is further estimated that it is the daily supply of
about 676,000 persons, furnishing an average of
20,000,000 gallonsaday. Should any apprehensions
however arise from time to time in the minds of
householders, they may be glad to know that inasmuch
as this source of supply is already under
the direct supervision of the Local Government
Board, as well as the scrutiny of the London
County Council, and is moreover daily watched
and analysed by the skilled advisers of the Company
itself, any further examination, so far as this
District Council is concerned would be superfluous,
except so far as it relates to the distributing mains,
etc.
Water Supply.
The anxiety of the householder need only
extend to his care of the water after it is received
from the Company, and to the possible contamination
it may be exposed to in his own house.
If his supply is direct from the main he has little
or nothing to fear; if, however, he is dependent
on storage cisterns, let him take care that these
are properly cleaned out two or three times a year,
kept covered—to exclude light, dust and foreign
19