Don't Drink The Water On Airplanes!

[MEM]

Inside Edition had a story last night about the high bacteria counts in the water supplies of 75% of airlines. Most of us would not drink the water from the sink in the lavatory but we might brush our teeth with it. Also, the drinking water that is provided during the beverage service often comes from the same water supply as the sink in the lavatory. They didn't mention the icecubes but that concerns me too.

The scientist who conducted the tests said that it convinced him to carry his own potable water supply the next time he flies. He said that the levels of bacteria in the samples could cause gastroenteritis in a healthy person, to say nothing of what it would do to a medically compromised one.

Something to think about.

 

[CarolMN]

I've always received bottled water when I've asked for water on a flight. I do drink the coffee, though, and ocasionally have a soda with ice. Fly a lot, but have never gotten sick.

 

[sgtdisney]

Very interesting information. Most of the time I have flown, I have seen them offer bottled water from say Evian or something similar. I never thought about the water storage system on a plane. I can tell you the ice is not made on the plane though. It is made by the catering companies and put on the plane when the drinks are loaded.

 

[MEM]

The head of some sort of flight attendant organization was interviewed on the show said that if you see water poured from one of the stainless steel pitchers, you can assume its from the plane's own water supply. I can recall being stuck on the runway in Orlando for several hours and the flight attendants brought plastic cups of water straight from the galley to the guests. That bothers me now, but I didn't think anything of it then.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

That bothers me now, but I didn't think anything of it then.

If it didn't bother you then, I doubt you have anything to worry about now.

 

[CarolA]

I have brushed my teeth lots of times on international flights and never had a problem. I don't drink from the water in the bathroom just because it looks kind of gross and is hot.

Airplanes don't have icemakers so the ice was loaded aboard by catering.

I always carry on water since the tiny cups they give us don't quench my thirst!