Whanganui District Council advises Fordell residents to boil water

Whanganui District Council has issued a boil water notice for Fordell rural water supply users. Photo / NZME

Fordell properties connected to the rural water supply have been advised to boil their water.

Whanganui District Council issued a boil water notice on Friday afternoon for all properties connected to the Fordell supply.

The council said it planned to replace the old roof on the reservoir storage tank, but while preparing for the work it found a section of the roof had deteriorated.

The boil water notice was issued as a precaution and Taumata Arowai, New Zealand’s water regulator, was informed.

“We are taking a ‘belts and braces’ approach to safety because the last thing we want is for someone to become sick,” council chief executive David Langford said.

“A temporary water supply had already been organised ahead of the roof replacement, and specialist contractors will soon be erecting scaffolding and installing a temporary cover so that the work can get under way.”

Water quality testing to date had shown no contamination and there were good levels of chlorine disinfectant in the water, Langford said.

Testing will continue daily until the roof repairs are complete.

Other rural water supplies and the Whanganui city supply are not affected.

Fordell scheme users should:

• Use boiled water for drinking, preparing food, cooking, making up infant formula, handwashing and cleaning teeth
• Bring the water to a rolling boil (where bubbles appear in the centre and do not disappear when the water is stirred) for one minute. Or boil the water in an electric jug until the jug turns off automatically
• Store the boiled water in a clean container with a lid. Boiled water is best used within 24 hours and can be boiled again to be sure it is safe. This is especially important for preparing infant formula.

The boil water notice will remain in place until the water supply is safe to drink or use normally.