Hundreds of homes and businesses left without drinking water in Munster

Boil water notice issued near Waterford-Tipperary border after heavy rainfall 

Irish Water said the issues were due to 'high levels of turbidity' in the water.

More than 500 households and businesses have been left without drinking water near the Waterford-Tipperary border.

A boil water notice was issued on Thursday by Irish Water to 343 homes and businesses on the Touraneena supply to protect public health.

A further outage has hit Ballymacarbry, near Clonmel, following heavy rainfall, with the number of households affected understood to be in the hundreds.

Irish Water said the issues affecting the Touraneena supply are due to "high levels of turbidity in the water", which means the liquid is cloudy due to a high concentration of particles.

Following consultation with the HSE and Waterford City and County Council, a boil water notice was issued.

Experts from Irish Water and the council said they are assessing the situation with a view to having the notice lifted as quickly and safely as possible. In the meantime, all customers of this supply are advised to boil water before use until further notice.

Customers are advised that water must be boiled for drinking, brushing of teeth, and infant feed.

Water can still be used for personal hygiene, bathing and flushing of toilets, but caution should be taken when bathing children to ensure that they do not swallow the bathing water.

Apologies for inconvenience

Pat Duggan, Irish Water spokesman, has acknowledged the impact this notice will have on the local community and apologised for the inconvenience to customers.

“We are working closely with Waterford City & County Council to restore drinking water quality for all impacted customers," he said.

"We will monitor the supply over the coming days and will seek to lift the notice in consultation with the HSE as quickly as it is safe to do so.” 

Irish Water said the number of people who could be without water for the Ballymacarbry supply is unknown, but could be in the hundreds.

It follows heavy rainfall yesterday, which the company believes may have affected the supply. Works took place on the supply in recent months to improve the infrastructure.