The city of Orlando, Florida has asked its citizens to limit their consumption of drinking water, so that liquid oxygen can be used to treat patients with COVID-19 in area hospitals.
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In an appeal to the population on Friday, the Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC), the municipal organization that deals with the distribution of water, said it could not count on as much oxygen as it habit for purification.
According to the Fox Orlando Network, the OUC normally receives 10 trucks of liquid oxygen per week. Deliveries have reportedly increased from five to seven trucks lately, due to demand in hospitals.
The OUC thus urged the nearly 500,000 inhabitants it serves to limit watering of their lawns and flower gardens for a time.
“If the OUC’s liquid oxygen reserves continue to decline and water use is not reduced, water quality could be affected. But, we believe that it will not be so if everyone does their part to conserve water, ”said the OUC.
Outdoor watering is estimated to account for about 40% of total drinking water use in central Florida.
After a relatively calm spring, COVID-19 cases in Florida have jumped to new heights not seen since the start of the pandemic. The southern state of the United States has recorded more than 20,000 new cases per day for just over a week.
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