6,000 homes in Roscrea and Shinrone receive boil water notice

Uisce Éireann has issued a Boil Water Notice to protect the health of approximately 5,900 customers supplied by Roscrea Regional Public Water Supply and parts of the Shinrone/Brosna Public Water Supply.

Poor water quality in the Little Brosna River, with elevated levels of ammonia, has impacted treatment processes at the water treatment plant.

The areas affected include customers in Roscrea town and surrounds: Glenbeha, Camlin, Scart, Gortmulin, Thesheehys, Derrymore, Racket Hall, Monaincha, Pintown, Irby, Borris and surrounding areas in County Tipperary.

In County Offaly, customers in Cooleeshill, Killavilla, Whitepark, Sheehane, Cloonagh, Shinrone Village, Brosna, Dungar and surrounding areas are impacted by this Boil Water Notice. A map of the affected area is attached and available to view on the supply and service section of water.ie.

All consumers affected by this notice must boil their water before drinking.

Uisce Éireann’s primary focus is and always will be the protection of public health. Drinking water experts from Uisce Éireann are working to implement solutions to lift the notice as quickly and as safely as possible.

In the meantime, all customers impacted are advised to boil and cool their water before use until further notice.

Uisce Éireann’s Colin Cunningham explained: “I would like to assure customers that the notice has been put in place to protect public health. The water treatment plant shut down yesterday due to elevated ammonia in the raw water and we were working off our reserves.

"However, a further shutdown today has caused the volume of treated water storage in the network to fall below sustainable levels. In order to maintain a supply for customers we are issuing this Boil Water Notice.  Ammonia can sometimes arise in water-courses as a result of uncontrolled discharge/run-off from a number of sources including on occasion from agricultural or industrial use. We would ask any such businesses in the vicinity/catchment of the Little Brosna River to check their property to see if there could be any such discharge occurring.”

Uisce Éireann’s drinking water standards, as per EU Drinking Water regulations, are strict and include wide safety margins. Where risks to water quality are identified through Uisce Éireann’s enhanced testing and monitoring programme, the Health Service Executive (HSE) is consulted, and Boil Water Notices are issued to protect public health.

In all instances immediate action is taken to address the cause of the issue to enable the lifting of the notice as quickly as it safe to do so, in agreement with the HSE.

Vulnerable customers who have registered with Uisce Éireann receive direct communication on Boil Water Notices. Customers are reminded that the water is safe to consume once boiled.

Water must be boiled for:

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

What actions should be taken:

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

Great care should be taken with boiled water to avoid burns and scalds as accidents can easily happen, especially with children.

Updates are available on their Water Supply Updates section on water.ie, on X (formerly twitter) @IWCare and via our customer care helpline, open 24/7 on 1800 278 278.