Navy water system users in Ford Island, Hale Moku and Manana Housing can now safely use their water for all purposes including drinking, cooking and oral hygiene, according to the Hawaii Department of Health.

That marks five of the 19 flushing zones on the Navy’s system that are cleared for use after the Navy contaminated the Red Hill well with jet fuel last year, sickening families and displacing thousands to hotel rooms in Waikiki.

The Navy’s water system is now coming from the Waiawa shaft which has been tested to verify it is safe to drink, DOH said in a press release. The contaminated Red Hill shaft has been disconnected from the Navy’s water system.

Subject matter experts at DOH and the U.S. EPA reviewed all the sample data and the Navy’s operations to ensure the water is safe, DOH said.

The Interagency Drinking Water System Team, made up of military officials and environmental regulators, agreed to draw samples from at least 10% of homes and 100% of schools and child development centers before affirming an area’s safety.

Additional locations will be sampled as part of a long-term monitoring plan, DOH said.

More information is available on DOH’s website.