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08:02 - 20-June-2008
South West Water issued the warning early yesterday morning after it realised river water may have got into the system at a treatment plant near Sparkwell.
People were advised to boil water before drinking it for the following 48 hours, as a precautionary measure.
South West Water operatives drove around the effected areas handing out leaflets to warn people of the possible risk.
A spokesman for South West Water said the 16,000 households represented a potential maximum that the compromised supply might reach.
Affected areas include Ivybridge, Lee Mill, Brixton, Newton Ferrers, Yealmpton, Sparkwell, Langage, Ermington, Ugborough, Wotter, Watercombe, Lee Moor, Cornwood, Elburton, Billacombe and Plympton.
A spokesman for South West water said: “The water can be used for washing, bathing and flushing toilets but South West Water is requesting customers to boil any water used for drinking, cleaning teeth, washing food, cooking or for medical purposes.”
David Farmer, head teacher of Plymstock School, said it had not been possible to supply boiled or bottled water to the approximately 2,000 students and staff at the school.
Many smaller schools coped with the problem in this way.
Mr Farmer made the decision to send Plymstock School students home at about 11.30am yesterday. He decided the school could provide water for the small number of students taking exams, and they were not affected.
It had been initially unclear wether the school was in the affected area. Once it had been confirmed that part of Plymstock was affected, Mr Farmer said he had asked for a bowser to be sent to the school by South West Water, but was told the water would have to be boiled anyway.
Mr Farmer said he realised that sending students home would be a considerable inconvenience to many people, but after carrying out a risk assessment he felt he had no other option.
South West Water inspectors were alerted by a remote monitoring system to a problem with the supply at about 1am yesterday.
It is thought the untreated water could have entered the supply system at the Houndall Water Treatment Works.
A warning was put out on TV, radio, and on websites, while South West Water called vulnerable customers such as hospitals, schools and disabled people individually.
People were asked to notify their neighbours if they felt they were vulnerable and may not have heard of the warning.
But it was initially not entirely clear which areas of Plymouth were affected.
About 100 staff and contractors from the water company’s Crownhill premises were drafted in to distribute leaflets to customers, while other employees drove around the affected areas using loud-hailers to warn people.
Engineers flushed water mains and took samples. yesterday they had not found anything of concern, but the company needs three clear samples before it can declare the water safe - and each can take 16 hours to provide a result.
A spokesman said: “Fortunately the water came from Dartmoor and is probably clean anyway.”
He said anyone who had drunk the water before hearing of the warning need not be concerned, but added: “Obviously if they feel ill they should contact their GP.”
A spokesperson for Plymouth City Council said officers had contacted schools, vulnerable people and service providers to pass on the warning.
She said it had been up to individual schools to make a decision on whether they could stay open.
Corinne Shore, communications manager at the PCT, confirmed that Plympton Hospital and the Lee Mill Mental Health Unit were in the affected area.
She said: “We will be following the precautions for at least 48 hours or until we receive further guidance.
“We don't expect it to cause a problem - it's just a case of boiling the water.”
Ice cream maker Langage Farm said they had had “a bit of a panic” when they heard of the warning but fortunately their water is treated separately with their own UV filter before being used to clean implements.
Gary Jones, engineering manager at Langage, said the plant was quarantined briefly yesterday morning before the nature of the problem was clear.
“The only downside was the late notification,” he said. “They didn’t ring us.
A spokesperson for South West Water said: “We had a massive logistical difficulty in getting word out to everybody.”
He said the company had to advise people to boil water from bowsers by law.
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