North Attleboro lifts boil water advisory

NORTH ATTLEBORO, Mass. (WLNE) — The Town of North Attleboro announced Tuesday evening that the boil water advisory has been lifted.

On Monday the town announced a boil water advisory after the discovery of enterococci in raw water samples from four town wells.

Now on Tuesday, town officials said all four wells tested negative for enterococci, which led to the advisory being lifted.

“We would like to assure our community that our raw water samples have been thoroughly tested and that our water is safe for consumption,” Town Manager Michael Borg said in a release. “We would like to thank our residents for their cooperation and patience during our ongoing boil water advisory, and our town officials and the DEP for working diligently to resolve this issue.”

The Department of Public Works made the following suggestions to town residents following the lift of the advisory.

• Cold Water Faucets: Run until the water feels cold, one minute or more, before drinking, brushing your teeth, or using it for food preparation. If you have a single-lever faucet, set it to run the cold water first. This will flush out any lead or copper that may have leached in from your home’s piping.
• 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
• Dishwashers: Run the dishwasher empty once after flushing hot water pipes and water heaters.
• 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.

Town officials also said they may flush hydrants, which could lead to some experiencing a lack of water pressure or discolored water, which will not pose an immediate health risk.