Update on Boil Water Notice in place on Lough Mask Regional Water Supply Scheme

Irish Water and Mayo County Council would like to remind customers whose water is supplied from the Lough Mask Regional Water Supply Scheme and associated Group Water Schemes that the boil water notice which was imposed on the scheme on Friday night remains in place.

A routine water sample has detected cryptosporidium in the treated water coming from the Lough Mask Water Treatment Plant and as a result the boil water notice has been put in place to protect the 46,500 people who are supplied from this plant.

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.
• Prepare infant feeds with water that has been brought to the boil once and cooled. Do not use water that has been re-boiled several times. If bottled water is used for the preparation of infant feeds it should be boiled once and cooled. If you are using bottled water for preparing baby food, be aware that some natural mineral water may have high sodium content. The legal limit for sodium in drinking water is 200mg per litre. Check the label on the bottled water to make sure the sodium or 'Na' is not greater than 200mg per litre. If it is, then it is advisable to use a different type of bottled water. If no other water is available, then use this water for as short a time as possible. It is important to keep babies hydrated. 

Anyone suffering from diarrhoea for more than two days should contact their general practitioner and provide a stool sample for testing. They should continue to drink plenty of boiled or bottled water. 

Great care should be taken with boiled water to avoid burns and scalds as accidents can easily happen, especially with children.

A map of the affected area can be viewed here, and anyone with queries can contact us on 1890 278 278.

The Boil Water Notice is viewable here and Mayo County Council’s website.

Irish Water and Mayo County Council have been working tirelessly since the boil water notice was announced to find a resolution to the situation.

All priority customers who registered with Irish Water have been contacted by telephone.

An incident management team was set up on Friday and auditing and testing of water from the treatment plant has been taking place across the network over the weekend.

A full and comprehensive audit of the Lough Mask Water Treatment Plant will take place tomorrow (Tuesday) by the Environmental Protection Agency and the results of the audit, combined with the results from the weekend’s sampling will be taken into consideration when deciding the next steps. Until the audit is complete and all of the data is available Irish Water, Mayo County Council and the HSE will not be in a position to speculate as to when the boil water notice will be lifted.

Irish Water and Mayo County Council are urging the public to continue to follow the advice of the HSE and boil water before consumption.

Public health is the priority for all agencies involved and Irish Water and Mayo County Council would like to apologise for the inconvenience this has caused to families, businesses and the agricultural community.