Water contamination discovered

Residents of select Saipan villages were warned yesterday to avoid using non-boiled water for consumption after bacteria was found in the water supply.

Acting Commonwealth Utilities Corp. executive director Alan Fletcher confirmed yesterday that a portion of the water system in the areas of Beach Road, from north of Pacific Islands Club to the San Antonio Church, along Afetnas Road, and Koblerville were found to have E. coli bacteria, which can make people sick, particularly those with weakened immune systems.

E. coli is a fecal indicator bacteria; it can indicate the presence of human and animal waste in the water. However, studies have also shown that storm water runoff in tropical environments may also contain these bacteria from the natural environment, which may not be directly associated with public health concerns.

The utilities firm has yet to determine where the bacteria is coming from but hinted at some possibilities: surface water runoff from recent rains into unsealed areas, back-flow while doing system maintenance, and leaks within older and dilapidated pipes.

Fletcher said a new round of samples will be collected today, Saturday, the results of which will be available Sunday morning.

“CUC has not pinpointed the root case of the contamination. However, its operations crews are actively cleaning the system and taking steps to remove any contamination. Increasing disinfection, system flushing, and repairing of any potential entry points by animals are currently underway,” he said.

CUC will lift the boil-order it issued to affected customers once the problem is addressed.

Fletcher said that CUC has increased the dosage of chlorine in the affected areas and is also flushing fire hydrants to clear the water lines.

Fletcher explained that when a drinking water boil-order is issued, it means affected customers are barred from drinking the water without boiling it first.

CUC advises customers to bring the water to a boil, for one minute, and then let it cool before using, or use bottled water. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, and food preparation until further notice. Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.

CUC hand-delivered yesterday its boil-order notice to affected customers. According to Fletcher the notification occurs when a sample is confirmed.

“In this case, one routine sample tested positive from a series of samples taken on Wednesday. Samples take 24 hours to process, which was Thursday morning. Once it showed ‘positive’ we immediately re-sample the area and one sample was confirmed [again tested positive] on Friday morning, resulting in our public notification today [Friday],” explained Fletcher.

CUC takes an average of 70 samples each month and without going through all the testing and re-sampling procedures, an official notice cannot be issued, he added.

Fletcher pointed out that this is the first boil-order CUC issued in three years. He said it was in 2009 when CUC had many boil-orders but due to the changes in its operation, including disinfection processes and operation personnel certifications, these 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,” he said.