Irish Water slammed for not alerting vulnerable customers to discoloured water

A Cork TD has strongly criticised Irish Water, after the utility company confirmed it does not notify vulnerable people using its service when drinking water is discoloured.

Sinn Féin TD for Cork North Central, Thomas Gould, said it was “deeply concerning” that people with visual impairments or intellectual disabilities are not notified by Irish Water about discoloured water.

A spokesperson for Irish Water said its policy is to immediately inform vulnerable people of boil water notices or do not consume notices, and added that vulnerable people also receive updates regarding all interruptions, planned and unplanned, anticipated to last longer than four hours.

In an email exchange seen by The Echo, when Mr Gould’s office asked Irish Water whether vulnerable people are notified if their water supply is discoloured, a spokesperson replied “No they are not”.

Mr Gould said he had been in lengthy correspondence with Irish Water over months on the issue of discoloured water.

“People are contacting me regularly and Irish Water are telling me the issues are resolved but I can see clearly that they are not,” the Sinn Féin TD said.

“Brown water is not drinking water, and what is deeply concerning is that people who may have visual impairments or intellectual disabilities are not being informed of the discolouration in their water.”

Mr Gould said Irish Water need to set in place a new communication plan that ensured vulnerable people using its services are notified immediately when their water is unsafe.

Mr Gould’s remarks come after months of incidences of discoloured water coming from the drinking supply all across the city.

Last week, after a series of questions from The Echo, Irish Water acknowledged that it had been responsible for the discolouration of some of the city’s drinking supply.

The company said an adjustment of the chemicals it uses in water preparation had caused sediment to come loose inside water mains, resulting in the discolouration.

A spokesperson for Irish Water said the company is continuing to investigate complaints regarding discolouration of water and had carried out extensive testing and sampling of water supplies throughout Cork city.

“The results of this testing have been shared with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the HSE and we can confirm that the water is safe to drink. 

"Irish Water and Cork City Council continuously test and sample water supplies across the city.”

Irish Water added: “If water from your kitchen tap looks orange or brown, Irish Water and Cork City Council recommend running the kitchen tap for a few minutes to see if the water returns to a clear colour.

“If the water does not run clear, contact the Irish Water Customer care team 24/7 on 1800 278 278 and it will be investigated. Do not drink discoloured water,” the company said.