Water given ‘all-clear’ after rodents found in reservoir

A boil water notice for Mapara has now been lifted and the Taupō District Council has confirmed there is no E.coli present.

The council advised Mapara residents to boil their water earlier this week after finding rodents in the Blueridge Water reservoir.

“All residents in the Mapara area [are advised] to boil water for human consumption (drinking, cooking and brushing teeth) until further notice,” it said in a Facebook post on Tuesday.

“We've found dead rodents in the Blueridge water reservoir (so gross). We don't know how they got in, but we'll find out.”

At 2pm on Wednesday it confirmed people could use their water as normal.

“Test results have confirmed that there has been no change to water quality on the Mapara scheme and the boil water notice is now lifted,” it said on its website.

“No contamination was detected, and tests have shown that chlorine levels are good and there is no E. coli present.

“The boil water notice was a precautionary measure taken while we carried out testing and confirmed there was no change to water quality. We have also confirmed there is no need to drain or treat water tanks.”

The council earlier said it would carry out extensive investigations, and would need to drain the reservoir, disinfect it and then re-fill it.

More information and updates can be found at the council’s website.