Crews working to lift Boil Water Notice for all customers supplied by Burncourt Regional and Burncourt Ballylooby Public Water Supplies

14 September 2023

Information below is relevant until further updates are provided here or on our Supply and Service Updates section.

Uisce Éireann, in partnership with Tipperary County Council, continues to progress works to lift the Boil Water Notice in place for customers supplied by Burncourt Regional and Burncourt Ballylooby Public Water Supplies. The notice is in place due to the deterioration of raw water quality which has impacted the treatment processes at the water treatment plant.

The notice impacts customers in Burncourt, Ballyporeen, Clogheen, Ballylooby, Mitchelstown Road in Cahir, and surrounding areas. The notice also impacts customers on the Kiltankin and Clonmore South Group Water Schemes. Customers can check if their property is included by visiting our Water Quality section, and entering the property’s Eircode or by calling the Uisce Éireann customer care helpline, open 24/7, on 1800 278 278.

While drinking water experts from Uisce Éireann are working to implement measures to lift the Boil Water Notice, all customers on this supply are advised to continue to boil their water before use until further notice. Customers are reminded that the water is safe to consume once boiled.

Uisce Éireann’s Kieran Fay said, “We wish to assure customers that we are working to resolve the issues at the water treatment plant and we acknowledge the impact this is having on the community. Public health is Uisce Éireann’s number one priority and I want to acknowledge the inconvenience that this Boil Water Notice is causing to the local community. The measures that have been carried out to date to try to lift the Boil Water Notice include extensive optimisation of the plant processes to treat the raw water quality abstracted into the plant. Uisce Éireann is also working on further design options to provide the plant with greater robustness in the treatment of the fluctuations in raw water quality in the catchment.”

Uisce Éireann’s drinking water standards, as per EU Drinking Water regulations, are strict and include wide safety margins. Where risks to water quality are identified through Uisce Éireann’s enhanced testing and monitoring programme, the Health Service Executive (HSE) are consulted, and Boil Water Notices are issued to protect public health. In all instances immediate action is taken to address the cause of the issue to enable the lifting of the notice as quickly as it safe to do so, in agreement with the HSE.

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Uisce Éireann receive direct communication on Boil Water Notices.

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.

What 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;
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.

Updates are available on our Water Supply Updates section, on Twitter @IWCare and via our customer care helpline, open 24/7 on 1800 278 278.

Click to view map of Boil Water Notice area

Previous Updates

Uisce Éireann and Tipperary County Council have issued a Boil Water Notice with immediate effect to protect the health of approximately 3,790 consumers supplied by Burncourt Regional and Burncourt Ballylooby Public Water Supplies. This is due to the deterioration of raw water quality which has impacted the treatment processes at the water treatment plant.

The notice impacts customers in Burncourt, Ballyporeen, Clogheen, Ballylooby, Mitchelstown Road in Cahir, and surrounding areas. The notice also impacts customers on the Kiltankin and Clonmore South Group Water Schemes. Customers can check if their property is included by visiting the Water Quality section and entering the property’s Eircode or by calling the Uisce Éireann customer care helpline, open 24/7, on 1800 278 278.

All consumers affected by this notice must boil their water before drinking.

In addition to the Boil Water Notice, some customers may experience an outage or reduced water pressure. This has been caused by loss of production last night while crews were working to try and address the treatment issues. Alternative water supplies will be available at the following locations and are expected to be in place by early afternoon: adjacent to the BMW Garage, Cahir; Ballyporeen Shop Carpark, Clogheen Church, Skeheenarinky National School, Burncourt Church and Ballylooby Church.

Customers are reminded to use their own containers when taking water from the tanker and to boil water before consumption as a precautionary measure as per HSE advice.

Uisce Éireann’s Colin Cunningham acknowledged the impact of this notice on the community and regrets the inconvenience to impacted customers, adding: “Public health is Uisce Éireann’s number one priority. We are working to restore drinking water quality for all impacted customers and to lift the Boil Water Notice as quickly as it is safe to do so, and in consultation with the HSE.”

“Uisce Éireann’s drinking water standards, as per EU Drinking Water regulations, are strict and include wide safety margins. Where risks to water quality are identified through Uisce Éireann’s enhanced testing and monitoring programme, the HSE are consulted and Boil Water Notices are issued to protect public health. In all instances immediate action is taken to address the cause of the issue to enable the lifting of the notice as quickly as it safe to do so,” he said.

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Uisce Éireann will receive direct communication on this Boil Water Notice and are reminded that the water is safe to consume once boiled and cooled.