Residents of about 1,400 homes in the Dublin suburb of Clontarf must continue to boil any water for drinking and cooking due to the presence of bacteria in the supply, Dublin City Council has said.
The problem has been continuing for almost two weeks.
The council said the area affected was the St Lawrence’s water district meter area (DMA), which covers an area from the Howth Road to Castle Avenue and from the Howth Road at Collins Avenue to Clontarf Road.
Some of the water samples in the area have indicated the presence of total coliforms above the standards required in the Water Supply Regulations. Coliforms are a group of bacteria commonly found in the environment.
“They are an indicator bacteria, used to detect if any other bacteria may be present and are not likely to cause illness,” the council said.
It insisted that no E.Coli, which indicates recent faecal contamination, had been found in the water samples to date.
Senior management in the council’s water services division and scientists from the City Central Laboratory are working with the Health Service Executive to restore normal service as soon as possible.
The council said the restrictions would remain in place to protect public health until compliant water samples were obtained for the area. It said test results were showing an improvement each day.
Mobile chlorination units have been put in place to ensure all pipes are disinfected and bacteria eliminated. Investigations are focused on the south east of the area at Castle Avenue and the surrounding streets (Stiles Road, Haddon Road, Victoria Avenue).
Valves were also replaced in the local distribution network at Castle Avenue over the weekend to improve the circulation of the water.
Three water tankers have been deployed – one mobile tanker travelling throughout the affected area and two stationary tankers. These are located on St Lawrence Road near the Howth Road junction, and on Castle Avenue near the Kincora Avenue junction. They are available from 7.30am to 7.30pm.
A spokeswoman for Dublin City Council confirmed the water supply in the St Lawrence meter area is safe to drink and cook with provided it is boiled first. It may be used for bathing, washing clothes and dishes.
Separately, the council has placed restrictions on water use at Moatfield Road, Coolock, to protect public health.
The council urged people in the area to boil water for drinking or cooking while it continues investigations and remedial works, including additional disinfection of the water mains.