Council's all-clear for water in Ballivor

HUNDREDS of Ballivor residents were forced to boil water before use for five days this week after a suspected contamination was found in the village's water supply for the second time within a year.

A 'boil notice' was issued by Meath County Council last Friday after routine testing showed up possible contamination and, while this notice was lifted for Ballivor yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon, it remained in force for Cloneycavan residents at time of going to press.

Meath County Council's spokesperson Bill Sweeney said the boil notice was advised as a precautionary measure on the advice of the HSE. However, the tests had come back clear yesterday and that there was no contamination.

He added that the 'boil notice' remains for the Cloneycavan district as a precaution while the system is being checked.

Local residents and councillors have hit out at the HSE for not taking samples over the weekend that would have given the all-clear sooner. Instead, locals faced the inconvenience of boiling water before they could use it to drink, wash, cook, clean or brush their teeth from Friday until Tuesday afternoon of this week.

South Meath county councillor William Carey said there did not seem to be any urgency on the part of the HSE and said the health authority should be available over weekends for serious situations like this one.

"For some reason, the HSE only work from 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday. If they had taken a sample on Saturday, the chances are we would have had the results on Sunday and the boil notice could have been lifted. It's a scandal and a disgrace and they should be rapped on the knuckles," he said.

"The cost and inconvenience of boiling water if there is no need is a disgrace. I will be asking the county manager to put the wheels in motion to find better ways of getting the results of samples taken quicker. It's a worrying time for people with children. They shouldn't have to worry if there is no need," he said.

A HSE spokesperson confirmed that the HSE had not carried out tests on the water supply on Saturday or Sunday.

No water tanker was provided for the village and many people were afraid to use the water, even after boiling, and resorted to buying bottled water to drink, cook, clean and wash children.

Many residents who did not receive the leaflets informing them of the water problem only heard about the boil notice through neighbours and friends, in some cases a day or two later, and were angry over the lack of communication.

Just last September, another contamination was detected in Ballivor that was caused by a malfunction of the disinfectant system at the water treatment plant. The local school had no choice but to close and children were sent home. Because of this, word spread quickly but, this time around during school holiday time, word of the boil notice was slower to filter down.

Colr Seamus Murray said a lot of people were not notified about the contamination and that most people in Earls Meadow did not seem to have been notified. "We got word on Friday afternoon about the boil notice. We don't know what the problem is, only that it is contaminated and that there wouldn't be an alternative supply," he said.

"The people I spoke to are very annoyed and I don't blame them. It was the local authority members who had to take the rap over the weekend because there was nobody else to take questions," he added.

Kenneth Ryan, who lives in Earls Meadow, said he only got notification when a neighbour was visiting a friend in another estate and called him at about 11pm on Friday night. "I eventually got speaking to someone on Saturday and they said it was on LMFM and announced on loudspeaker. My wife was at home all day on Friday and she heard nothing and we wouldn't listen to LMFM. This is a commuter village and a lot of people are out at work during the day," said Mr Ryan.

"It's very frustrating. Had the neighbour not rang us, we would have had no way of knowing, unless we were down in the village and talking to someone in the shop or something."

Mr Ryan said he called the council office over the weekend and there wasn't even an automated message to tell people what was going on.

Speaking on Monday afternoon, Melanie Drake, who lives in Glebe Wood, said the first she heard was around 3pm on Saturday when a neighbour asked her if she heard about the contamination. She said she drinks bottled water but would use tap water for making tea and washing vegetables. "They could have made it a bit more public," she said. "It's disgraceful in this day and age. It's the 21st century and we should have an up-to-date water system."

Niall Spellman, Earls Meadow, said he came back off holidays on Sunday evening and found the notice in the door. There was no water tanker. He added that Ballivor was the "forgotten part of Meath" and said Meath County Council was "slow to react and was never proactive".

Eddie Whelan from Woodfield said he had got a notice in the door saying they couldn't wash clothes or wash using the water. "We had to get the sterilizer back out for the baby and we can't bath her and have to use baby wipes to clean her. We've been buying bottled water to fill the kettle. They say if you boil the water and boil it again, then it's alright, but I wouldn't use it."

Denise Grufferty, Parkstown View, said she had a three-year-old child who was sick last Tuesday and the hospital didn't know what was wrong with him and put it down to a viral infection, but now she is thinking it may have had something to do with the water. "We haven't heard anything since Friday afternoon. They are not telling us anything and we don't know when it is over," she said.