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CUC lifts localized drinking water boil-order
The Commonwealth Utilities Corp. lifted yesterday afternoon its localized drinking water boil-order after determining that previously affected areas and villages are now free of bacterial contamination.
CUC hand-delivered last Friday notices to customers along Beach Road, from north of the Pacific Islands Club Saipan to the San Antonio Church, along Afetnas Road, and in Koblerville, alerting residents in the area that bacteria contamination was initially in the water supply.
While the utilities company has not pinpointed the root cause of the contamination on Friday, its operations crews actively cleaned the system and have taken steps to remove any contamination.
Actions include, but were not limited to, increasing disinfection, system flushing, and repairing of any potential entry points by animals. CUC also re-tested the affected areas Saturday morning.
Acting CUC executive director Alan Fletcher announced yesterday that lifting of the boil-order describing the “all clear” as welcome news for CUC customers because water use can now return to normal. He said water in the affected areas is now safe to drink as laboratory tests confirmed its safety.
“This is the first boil-order we have had in three years, so until this point an excellent record. Customers may remember back to 2009 and before, where we had many boil-orders, however, changes in our operations including disinfection processes and operations training have resulted in best practices for delivering drinking water. While we have made a lot of progress, this event shows we must stay diligent and that we have more to accomplish,” stated Fletcher in a statement yesterday.
By Moneth Deposa
Reporter
