WATER ALERT ROCKS BURBS

THOUSANDS of people on Hobart’s Eastern Shore will need to boil their water

until further notice after the presence of E coli bacteria was found at the Lauderdale Reservoir.

TasWater issued a boil water alert as a precaution for customers in Lauderdale, Roches Beach, Acton Park and Seven Mile Beach yesterday. It warned all water used for drinking, brushing teeth, washing and producing food or beverages, preparing baby formula and making ice should be boiled. TasWater said it was unclear how long the alert would remain in place.

THOUSANDS of people on Hobart’s Eastern Shore will need to boil their water until further notice after the presence of E coli bacteria was found during routine testing at the Lauderdale Reservoir.

TasWater issued a boil water alert as a precaution for customers in Lauderdale, Roches Beach, Acton Park and Seven Mile Beach yesterday.

It warned that all water used for drinking, brushing teeth, washing and producing food or beverages, preparing baby formula and making ice should be boiled.

TasWater technical solutions program manager Lance Stapleton said it was unclear how long the alert would be in place.

“We test weekly throughout our system at many locations and we identified this one location as containing evidence of E coli bacteria. Strangely, other locations nearby did not indicate the presence of the bacteria,” he said.

“We really need to get to the bottom of what is the cause and then we need to fix the root cause. We also need to do two consecutive tests 24 hours apart to make sure the water is safe.

“I anticipate this will be for at least another day or two, hopefully no longer than that.”

Mr Stapleton yesterday said no reports of related illnesses had been received.

Notices with important information about the use of water were dropped in letter boxes in the impacted area and alternative water supplies were made available to the local school and aged-care facility.

Parents and carers of students at Lauderdale Primary were told of the potential risk via the school’s app.

“At this stage we’ve been advised by Southern Water to not drink our tap water,” principal Tracey Johnston’s message read.

“If you would like to pick up your children, that is perfectly acceptable.”

The Health Department advises that consumption of unboiled water could lead to nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal cramps and a general feeling of being unwell.

If you are concerned that you may have been affected by contaminated water, contact your GP.

Last month a water sample collected from Claremont returned a low-level recording of E coli bacteria but a resample came back clear.

Information on the boil water alert is available on the TasWater website www.taswater.com.au or call 136 992.