Boil water notice to be lifted in phased approach

South West Water said it had progressed in cleaning and protecting its water network

The water company dealing with a parasite outbreak is "preparing for a phased approach" to lifting its boil water notices in parts of Devon.

About 2,500 homes in Brixham and Kingswear remain under the notice after cryptosporidium, which can cause diarrhoea and sickness, was found in the water supply on 15 May.

South West Water (SWW) said it had progressed in cleaning and protecting its water network.

David Harris, SWW Incident Director, said the phased lifting approach would allow it to "give people access to clean and safe drinking water quicker" in a safer manner.

He said: "We have completed ‘ice pigging’ of the Boohay network – this more aggressive approach to remove cryptosporidium utilises ice crystal technology, to scrape mineral deposits off the sides of the pipes.

"We also have a double layer of protection in place including the installation of microfilters and results show that our interventions are working."

SWW said it believed a damaged air valve on private land had caused the outbreak and work on preventing the parasite being reintroduced was complete.

Residents under the boil water notice were offered an increased compensation of £265 on 11 June, but those affected called for further compensation as the notice had lasted nearly a month.

The company said it was delivering bottled water to residents and would continue to do so until the restriction was lifted.

Mr Harris said it would "proactively contact our customers when we are able to lift any boil water notices and will provide them with all of the necessary information and support".