East Cork residents hit with boil water notice for fourth time in four years

Irish Water say it is working to resolve the issue which will affect Whitegate, Aghada, Churchtown, Ballycotton, Cloyne, Saleen, Shanagarry and Ballinacurra

Irish Water is working to resolve the issue, which will affect 6,000 customers in the East Cork area. 

More than 6,000 people in East Cork have been hit with their fourth boil water notice in as many years.

Irish Water says it’s working to resolve the latest issue to affect the Whitegate regional public water supply system which supplies water to homes and businesses in the Whitegate, Aghada, Churchtown, Ballycotton, Cloyne, Saleen, Shanagarry and Ballinacurra areas.

It also said it had already begun exploring a "long-term robust solution" to ensure greater reliability in the system after a string of issues in recent years affecting the Kilva water treatment plant, which draws its water from the Dower underground spring.

The utility said it introduced the latest boil water notice in consultation with the HSE and Cork County Council as a precautionary measure following issues with the treatment process at the water treatment plant which may have compromised the disinfection process which makes the water safe to drink.

But it's understood that this latest boil water notice will be in place for a matter of weeks, rather than months as had previously been the case.

“Irish Water’s drinking water compliance and operational experts are working with colleagues in Cork County Council to resolve the issue as soon as possible,” a spokesman said.

“In the meantime, all customers of this supply are advised to boil water before use until further notice.

“Irish Water acknowledges the impact and inconvenience caused by the imposition of a boil water notice to homes and businesses.

“We wish to thank the community for their patience and cooperation while we work to resolve this issue."

The utility also said it is contacting registered vulnerable customers who are affected by the boil water notice to advise them.

In the meantime, water must be boiled for drinking, for drinks made with water, in the preparation of salads and similar foods, which are not cooked prior to eating, for the brushing of teeth and for the making of ice.

People have been advised to dump filtered water from their fridges and to dump ice cubes from their freezers. It is however safe to use the water for showering and bathing, and for flushing the toilet.

It is the fourth boil water notice affecting people in this area since early 2016.

A boil water notice introduced in February 2016 lasted almost eight months and wasn’t lifted until October of that year after a new filtration unit was installed.

In November 2019, some 9,500 people in the same area were affected after another boil water notice was introduced following a string of rainfall events which affected the Dower spring's turbidity - a measure of the concentration of particles in the water. Increased levels detected in the water at the treatment plant led to automatic shutdown of the plant.

That boil water notice was lifted five days before Christmas 2019.

But it was introduced again just weeks later, in February 2020 after a pipe burst at the treatment plant affected the filtration process.