Households in Laois face weekend without safe tap water

People on the public water supply in Clonaslee village, Castlecuffe and surrounding areas will need to continue to boil their water  going into the weekend.

That's the latest update on the water supply problem which has caused Uisce Éireann (Irish Water) to issue maintain a Boil Water notice for thousands of housholds in Laois and Offaly.

In its latest update issued on Friday, June 23 the utility announced a partial lifting of the Notice, that was first issued on June 20 for customers on the Tullamore South and Clonaslee Water Supply. The notice was initially issued to 3,900 customers.

"Following the completion of network reconfiguration, the boil water notice has been lifted with immediate effect for Colliers Brook estate and the Spollanstown Industrial Estate. All consumers within the Colliers Brook Estate and Spollanstown Industrial Estate can now resume normal use of the water supply for drinking, food preparation and brushing teeth. 

"Uisce Éireann, Offaly County Council and Laois County Council continue to work to lift the BWN as quickly as possible, in consultation with the HSE, for remaining customers including reviewing ongoing process control, and monitoring and testing of the drinking water supply," said the statment.

In reply to a query from the Leinster Express / Laois Live, the supplier said Laois people on the network in Clonaslee village, Castlecuffe and surrounding areas would remain under the notice.  It said Offaly customers in Spollanstown, Charleville Road and Clonminch would also have to boil water.

Customers can check if their property is included by visiting the Water Quality section of www.water.ie and entering the property’s Eircode or by calling the Uisce Éireann customer care helpline, open 24/7, on 1800 278 278. A map of the area is attached and available to view on the supply and service section of water.ie. 

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Uisce Éireann receive direct communication on Boil Water Notices. Customers are reminded that the water is safe to consume once boiled.

The company also advised that vulnerable customers who have registered with Uisce Éireann receive direct communication on boil water notices. People were also are reminded that the water is safe to consume once boiled.

Water must be boiled for:

• Drinking;
• Drinks made with water;
• Preparation of salads and similar foods, which are not cooked prior to eating;
• Brushing of teeth;
• Making of ice;
• Discard ice cubes in fridges and freezers and filtered water in fridges.
• Make ice from cooled boiled water. 

Uisce Éireann outlined the actions should be taken:

• Use water prepared for drinking when preparing foods that will not be cooked (e.g. washing salads);
• Water can be used for personal hygiene, bathing and flushing of toilets but not for brushing teeth or gargling;
• Boil water by bringing to a vigorous, rolling boil (e.g. with an automatic kettle) and allow to cool. Cover and store in a refrigerator or cold place.
• Water from the hot tap is not safe to drink.
• Domestic water filters will not render water safe to drink;
• Caution should be taken when bathing children to ensure that they do not swallow the bathing water;

   

The following advice is giving for people preparing infant formula:

Where a Boil Water Notice is in place, you can prepare infant formula from tap water that has been boiled once (rolling boil for 1 minute) and cooled beforehand. Bottled water can also be used to make up infant formula. All bottled water, with the exception of natural mineral water, is regulated to the same standard as drinking water.

It is best not to use bottled water labelled as ‘Natural Mineral Water’ as it can have high levels of sodium (salt) and other minerals, although it rarely does. ‘Natural Mineral Water’ can be used if no other water is available, for as short a time as possible, as it is important to keep babies hydrated.

If bottled water is used to make up infant formula it should be boiled once (rolling boil for 1 minute), and cooled in the normal way. Ready-to-use formula that does not need added water can also be used. 

Great care should be taken with boiled water to avoid burns and scalds as accidents can easily happen, especially with children.

Irish water advises that customers can check if their property is included by visiting the Water Quality section of www.water.ie and entering the property’s Eircode or by calling the Uisce Éireann’s customer care helpline, open 24/7, on 1800 278 278. A map of the area is attached and available to view on the supply and service section of www.water.ie 

It says updates are available on in the Water Supply Updates section on water.ie, on Twitter @IWCare and via our customer care helpline, open 24/7 on 1800 278 278.