BOURNE – Town Administrator Marlene McCollem would like to share that the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has lifted its boil water order today for Bourne Water District customers, effective immediately.
The Bourne Water District collected samples as required by DEP yesterday and sent the samples for analysis. This afternoon, DEP notified the Bourne Water District that the boil water order has been lifted.
The following precautions from DEP are recommended for Bourne Water District customers:
Flush your household and building water lines, including:
• Interior and exterior faucets
• Showers
• Water/ice dispensers
• Water treatment units, etc.
• Water heaters may need to be flushed to remove any contaminated water
• Some types of water treatment devices may need to be disinfected or replaced before being used. Check with the manufacturer for details.
Cold Water Faucets: Run until the water feels cold, one minute or more, before drinking, brushing your teeth, or using for food preparation. If you have a single-lever faucet, set it to run the cold water first.
Hot Water Faucets: To clear hot-water pipes and water heaters of untreated water, change all faucets to hot water and flush for at least:
• 15 minutes for a typical household 40-gallon hot-water tank
• 30 minutes for an 80-gallon hot water tank or larger
Hot water is then safe to use for washing hands, dishes, pots and pans, etc. Never use water from the hot faucet for drinking, rinsing your mouth, or cooking.
Dishwashers: After flushing hot water pipes and water heaters, run the dishwasher empty one time.
Humidifiers: Discard any water used in humidifiers, Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines, oral, medical or health care devices. Rinse the device with clean water.
Food and baby formula: Discard baby formula and other foods prepared with water on the day or days of the boil order. (If unsure of the dates, contact your water department.)
Refrigerator water-dispensing machine: Flush with at least one quarter of water. If unsure of your dispenser’s capacity, refer to manufacturer specifications.
Ice cubes: Empty automatic ice dispensers of ice made during the boil order and run through a 24-hour cycle. Discard this ice to assure purging of the icemaker’s water supply line.
The Bourne Water District issued a boil water order for its customers on Friday, Aug. 11. The order only applied to customers on the south side of the Cape Cod Canal. The Sagamore Water District and Buzzards Bay Water District were not impacted.
The order was issued after routine water samples collected on Aug. 10, tested positive for E. coli. Immediately after identifying the positive samples, water district officials engaged DEP, and a boil water order was issued.
Town of Bourne officials worked closely with the Bourne Water District to ensure proper communication of this issue to residents and business owners over the past five days. To sign up for the Town’s Emergency Notification System to receive additional updates click here.
Customers who have questions can contact the Bourne Water District at 508-563-2294 and check for updates at www.bournewaterdistrict.com.
