Question: you are the chief operations officer of your local hospital...

You are the Chief Operations Officer of your local hospital. The town has just been hit by a Category 3 hurricane. There is widespread damage to the town. You have a disaster plan in effect, but are finding it has numerous deficiencies.

The emergency department director just informed you that when they turn on the water at the sinks, only smelly brown sludge appears. Now none of the healthcare workers can wash their hands, patients can’t bathe, surgeons can’t scrub, and there is no fresh water to drink. This scenario was not contemplated in your disaster plan, so you have to think fast.

1. In your first post, do some research and describe what your options would be in this case in the peer-reviewed literature. What has worked in other facilities faced with this problem?