Irish Water officials will meet with the HSE tomorrow or Friday to discuss latest test results related to the Boil Water Notice in south Tipperary.
Over 11,000 customers have been affected since last Friday, when the notice was served on the Ardfinnan Public Water Supply due to increased cloudiness in the water after heavy rainfall.
Regional Operations Manager with Irish Water, Jim Fitzgerald, says testing is ongoing at the plant to try and resolve the issue.
“We’re taking tests on the plant and reviewing the raw water intake. The issue was caused by some issue with the raw water which caused turbidity, or cloudiness, in the water. So the plant had difficulty in treating it.
“So we consulted with the HSE and agreed that a Boil Water Notice would be put in place. At the moment we’re gathering tests to go back to the HSE with, so we’re hoping to meet the HSE either on Thursday or Friday, and we’ll discuss it further with them.”
Many local politicians have been critical of the lack of notice given about the restrictions. Jim has apologised for this, but says the scale of the disruption offers challenges with communications.
“We’d be disappointed if people weren’t aware, and apologise if somebody didn’t get the information. With a population of 11,000, it’s more challenging. If it was a small village you could give out notices by hand to people.
“We go through our normal channels with the local reps, with yourselves at Tipp FM, local media. And also on our website. So if anybody has any issues, the best place is to go to our website (water.ie) or to phone 1800 278 278, our free-phone number.”
