Boil water notice affecting up to 650 households remains in place in Tipperary

Irish Water and Tipperary County Council wishes to remind the public that the boil water notice implemented on September 3 is still in effect in the Horse and Jockey area. 

Irish Water says the notice is in place to protect 650 customers from increased turbidity in the raw water source. 

Horse and Jockey, Forgestown, Moycarkey, Curraheen, Ballymurreen, Drumgower, Newtown and the surrounding areas are all affected.

Customers can check if their property is included by visiting the Water Quality section of www.water.ie and entering the property’s Eircode or by calling the Irish Water customer care helpline, open 24/7, on 1800 278 278. 

According to Irish Water, they are working on upgrading the treatment process and will issue another update in the coming weeks. 

In the meantime, they advise all customers on this supply to boil water before use until further notice.

Irish Water’s Operations Lead, Colin Cunningham, said they regret customer inconvenience.

“Public health is Irish water’s number one priority, and we would like to assure customers that the notice was put in place to protect public health. 

“We acknowledge the inconvenience caused to homes and businesses and would like to assure customers that we are working to resolve the issue and lift the notice as quickly and as safely as possible, in consultation with the HSE. 

“Irish Water is pursuing a permanent solution to address the turbidity issues at the plant. This involves an upgrade to the treatment processes at the plant that will ensure a safe, reliable drinking water supply to customers supplied by Horse and Jockey Public Water Supply,” said Mr Cunningham. 

Irish Water says the water remains suitable for handwashing but must be boiled in the following circumstances:

• Drinking
• Drinks made with water
• Preparation of salads and similar foods, which are not cooked before eating
• Brushing of teeth
• Making ice - discard ice cubes in fridges and freezers and filtered water in fridges. Make ice from cooled boiled water.

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Irish water receive direct communication on Boil Water Notices. 

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They said the water is safe to consume once boiled and issued the following advice: 

• 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 it to a vigorous, rolling boil (e.g. with an automatic kettle) and allow it 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 additional 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.