Irish Water and Cavan County Council have issued a ‘Do Not Drink’ water restriction on the Swanlinbar public water supply in West Cavan.
It follows advice from the HSE following the discovery of elevated chlorine levels in the supply. The warning was formally issued to the public on Tuesday, July 2.
“This drinking water restriction is effective immediately due to increased chlorine levels in the water supply. The issue was detected following sampling which showed elevated chlorine levels in the supply,” the statement from Irish Water and Cavan County Council said.
The HSE advises that water from the supply is unsafe to either consume for drinking, use in connection with food preparation, and also in use for personal hygiene, including brushing teeth and bathing.
Irish Water expects that the issue will be resolved in the coming days, and in the meantime customers must not drink the water or wash in the water until further notice.
Customers are advised to draw down water from attic/ storage tanks; to flush toilets or run bathroom taps intermittently; and as tanks refill chlorine levels in storage tank will return to normal.
Tankered water will be available at the car part to the rear of O’Reillys filling station in Swanlinbar.
Leaflets meanwhile advising customers of the ‘Do Not Drink’ and ‘Do Not Wash’ will be distributed in the impacted area by County Council staff.
For more information and additional advice, please call Irish Water’s 24-hour customer care helpline on 1850 278 278 or log onto www.water.ie.