What sanitation do you provide during a disaster response?
Fast answer: standard portable toilets, handwashing stations and sometimes a full restroom trailer rental, scaled to however many people need to use them. Council Bluffs floods and severe weather events don't wait for a normal lead time, so our response kit leans on emergency porta potty rental units that can be delivered and set within hours, not days. A standard unit holds a 60 to 70 gallon tank and sits about 44 by 48 inches on the ground, small enough to fit a church parking lot, a school bus loop or a gravel shoulder near a shelter.
For a shelter housing dozens of displaced residents, we size the count the same way a jobsite would: OSHA 1926.51(c) sets 1 toilet for 20 people or fewer, then adds fixtures as headcount climbs past 20 and again past 200. That ratio holds whether it's a construction crew or a Red Cross shelter, and it's the starting point we use on our how many porta potties do I need guide. We also bring handwashing station rental units, since 29 CFR 1910.141(d)(2) requires soap and towels or a hand-drying device at a washing station, not just sanitizer. If the situation runs longer than a few days, a holding tank rental or a septic pumping service visit keeps existing systems from backing up.
How fast can you deliver during an emergency in Council Bluffs?
Fast answer: same-day or next-day in most cases, faster than our routine monthly porta potty rental scheduling because relief work gets priority routing. Council Bluffs sits close to several communities we already serve, which matters when a flood knocks out roads on one side of town. Weston is 10.5 miles northeast, Mineola is 17.5 miles southeast, and if a shelter opens closer to the river we can shift a truck from a job near La Vista, about 15.2 miles west, without much delay. Papillion, 20.5 miles southwest, and Offutt AFB, 15.2 miles southwest, are both within range if mutual-aid routing sends units that direction instead.
Delivery trucks need roughly 60 feet of straight clearance behind them to set a unit safely, which matters on a debris-covered street or a shelter lot packed with parked cars. If access is tight, we'll talk placement over the phone before the truck rolls, using the same approach outlined on our porta potty placement guide. Accessible units matter here too: ADA Standards section 213.2 calls for at least 5 percent of a cluster of single-user toilets to be accessible, never fewer than one, so a shelter serving a broad range of residents needs at least one ADA accessible porta potty in the mix from the start, not added later.
What does disaster relief sanitation cost and who pays for it?
Fast answer: pricing follows our normal porta potty rental cost structure, with standard units running $100 to $350 a day and delivery fees layered on top; agencies and municipalities sometimes cover the bill directly, and we can invoice that way. Below is what typically applies during an active response in Council Bluffs.
| Item | Duration | Typical Price |
|---|---|---|
| Standard unit | Day | $150 |
| Standard unit | Week | $200 |
| Delivery fee | Day | $150 |
| Service fee | Day | $175 |
| ADA unit | Day | $230 |
Longer deployments shift toward the porta potty rental per day or weekly rate rather than the day rate, since a shelter open for two weeks costs less per day on a week-long agreement than on repeated single-day bookings. If flooding hits a farm operation or ag business outside the main shelter zone, our farm and agricultural restrooms page covers a similar setup. Storage needs often follow disaster response too. We rent storage container rental units for donated supplies and a roll-off dumpster rental for storm debris once cleanup starts, and a temporary fence rental can secure a staging area overnight.
How many toilets does a shelter need?
Use the same construction-site ratio as OSHA 1926.51(c): 1 toilet for every 20 people up to 20, then additional fixtures per 40 people beyond that. A shelter housing 60 people needs at least 3 units minimum, more if meals or medical services are on site. Add one ADA unit regardless of headcount.
Do you charge extra for emergency or same-day delivery?
Same-day and emergency delivery costs more than scheduled service, generally landing near the higher end of our delivery fee band, sometimes $500 for the fastest turnaround. We'll quote the number before the truck leaves so there's no surprise on the invoice afterward.
Can you supply handwashing stations without portable toilets?
Yes. Shelters sometimes already have restrooms but need more sinks. We deliver standalone portable sink rental and hand sanitizer station rental units, and 29 CFR 1910.141(d)(2) still applies. Soap and towels, not sanitizer alone, satisfy that standard.
What if the disaster damaged an existing septic system?
We handle that as emergency septic work. A residential tank normally gets pumped every 3 to 5 years, but storm damage or flooding can force an off-cycle pump-out. Call our emergency septic service line and we'll assess the tank before it backs up further.
Will you work directly with a relief agency or the city?
Yes, we invoice agencies, churches and municipal contacts directly when asked. Bring your agency's site contact and expected headcount when you request a quote, and we'll size the order and confirm delivery timing the same call.
Next step
Get a delivery date
Tell us the address, the dates and the headcount. We size the order and confirm the route.