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by benjohnson 3288 days ago
The 3 minutes idea is to kill anything that may be deeply imbedded the bits of wood, leaves, and other detritus suspended in the water.

It's generally considered paranoid overkill when you consider the water will take a while to cool - it will stay in the "kill everything" temperature for quite a while in the process.

https://besurvival.com/guides/how-long-should-you-boil-water