Boil water notice affecting 10,000 extended by 8 months

Irish Water has been described as “a shambles” by business owners in Co Cork after it was announced a boil water notice affecting 10,000 people will now be extended by up to eight months.

The national water utility said that the current boil water notice on the Whitegate/Dower Rural Water Supply Scheme would have to stay in place for at least another sixth months.

It is the third boil water notice in the area since early December.

In a statement, Irish Water said: “Ground surrounding the water treatment plant is waterlogged due to record rainfall in recent months and all rainfall is now reaching the water treatment plant from the surrounding catchment area very quickly.”

It said this was leading to cloudiness in the water supplying the water treatment plant.

Whitegate Water Treatment Plant supplies 10,000 customers in Whitegate with nine million litres of water every day.

Irish Water said that the boil water notice will remain in place for six to eight months “until short-term upgrade works are completed”.

Owner of the Pepperstack bar and bistro in Lower Aghada, Martin Budden said that people in the area had received no direct communication from Irish Water and the extension of the current boil water notice would cost him business.

“It is a shambles,” he said. “We were not directly told. I am spending €55 to €60 a day on water. They are putting my business under serious pressure. If I am dropping 55 quid a day there is no profit in the business,” he said.

The current notice commenced on February 13.

Aisling Buckley, regional information officer at Irish Water, said a permanent robust water supply is needed and work under its capital investment plan would ensure the water network is “resilient to adverse weather conditions”.