KALAMAZOO, MI -- Residents in the city of Parchment and Cooper Township will be provided bottled water Friday morning after elevated levels of PFAS were found in Parchment's water system.

Residents in affected areas should immediately stop using water for drinking, cooking, making baby formula and food or rinsing fruits and vegetables until further notice. The water should also not be given to pets.

There are about 3,000 people on the city of Parchment water system, officials said.

According to a release on the Parchment's website, a test conducted by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality came found with a level of 1,410 parts per trillion. This level is 20 times higher than the EPA lifetime health advisory of 70 ppt.

PFAS compounds have been linked to thyroid and liver disease and an increased risk for certain cancers and other illnesses.

"We fully recognize the seriousness of the situation and we recognize that people are going to have concerns," Kalamazoo County Sheriff Richard Fuller said at a media event held Thursday night.

Bottled water will be available to affected residents from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, July 27, at Parchment High School, 1916 East G Ave.

Other distribution days are likely to be set, Fuller said. It's not clear how long residents will have to use bottled water.

"I want to make sure everybody understands that we have a team in place that is very prepared to help the citizens," he said.

Multiple agencies will be assisting with the distribution of water including the Parchment Fire Department, Kalamazoo Township police and fire departments and the Kalamazoo County Sherriff's office.

For further information, resident on the Parchment water supply system can call the Parchment water hotline at 269-567-7595 or 269-567-2517. Residents unable to leave their homes are being told to contact the hotline to receive water.

Monitoring the health effects of PFAS is still in early stages, said William Nettleton, medical director for Kalamazoo County Health and Community Services.

"If folks may have potentially been exposed to PFAS, I recommend speaking with your personal physician regarding your annual exams where medical tests that are standard medical practice can be employed such as thyroid test or cholesterol test," Nettleton said.

Blood tests may not be a reliable indicator of whether someone is contaminated with PFAS at levels that are harmful, Nettleton said. Health outcomes related to PFAS can't be determined without a community-wide study, he said.

A short-term plan to return safe drinking water to the area will start within the next 24-48 hours/ The city of Parchment's water supply system will be drained, according to a news release from the county's Health and Community Services Department.

Officials plan to connect residents currently on the city of Parchment's water supply to the city of Kalamazoo's water supply system. The city of Kalamazoo will flush Parchment's water supply system until test results come back with PFAS levels below the health advisory level of 70 ppt.

"We do not know how long this process will take, but residents will not be connected back to the city of Parchment's water supply until it is approved," the release states.

Officials

of the Parchment city water system, shown below. The green line shows the city of Parchment's boundaries and blue lines show the extent of the city's water system, which also reaches residents in portions of neighboring Cooper Township.