'Boil Water' notice issued as parasite found in Roscommon water supply

An incident response team has been put in place after an outbreak of Cryptosporidiosis was identified in south Roscommon.

The County Council said the infectious organism was recently located in a water supply.

Cryptosporidiosis is a gut infection caused by a parasite that causes diarrhoeal illness. Most healthy people get over the illness quickly but severe illness can occur in people with poor immune systems.

A number of areas have been affected and a full list is available on the county councils website.

A 'Boil Water' notice was issued on the advice of the Health Service Executive West and Roscommon County Council and an Incident Response Team has been established to investigate the incident.

The local authority said it is essential that people in the affected areas boil any water for drinking or food preparation.

The council said the 'Boil Water Notice’ will be lifted when the water supply is considered to be safe and Roscommon County Council and HSE West say they will continue to work together to manage the incident.