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Comment by secretasiandan | Hacker News Reader

I'm not sure that the cisterns he speaks of are meant for drinking, I think they're meant for fighting fires.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Francisco_Fire_Department_A...

If they were used for drinking in the case of an emergency, I think you'd have to treat it a little bit unless they flush them regularly.

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After any disaster you should boil any water you're going to drink. It seems excessive, but without a supply of clean water you really don't want to get diarrhoea. You really don't want to get diarrhoea if you're idiotic enough to be sodium-conscious with your disaster kit as then you're really risking death due to electrolyte imbalance.

There are many water-purification techiniques superior to boiling. heating water takes time, fuel, equipment, a stable clean environment.

Iodine tablets take a water bottle, plus water.

That's true. I'd say enough for 2L per day for 3 days would be enough for a single person for your average kit. If it's taking longer than 3 days for things to get back to normal I'd suggest being out of the city where you can get easier access to wood and water.

My experience at Burning Man is that 8 liters per day per person is a more usual rate of consumption, because you need water not just for drinking, but also for cooking food, washing dishes, washing your body, washing your hands, and washing wounds.

Iodine's also useful in some radiation circumstances.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potassium_iodide#Thyroid_protec...

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