'Water should be a basic human right': Cork family's three-year ordeal over discoloured water

A BALLYVOLANE father of young twins has spoken about his family’s ordeal with undrinkable and discoloured water in their home.

‘Barry’, whose real name is known to The Echo, lives in rented accommodation with his partner and their two-year-old twins.

“This is going on now three years,” he said.

“At the start it was just once every few months, but it went to literally every other day, to where we now have an old honey jar on the windowsill and we draw off the tap and fill that and hold it up to the light to see if it’s clear.”

He said he and his partner have been spending approximately €20 every week over the past two years on bottled water so their twin babies could have clean drinking water.

He claimed that the water coming from their taps has also had a damaging effect on household appliances.

“We’ve gone through a new electric kettle every six months or so, and it’s cost us a washing machine, a dishwasher, and a shower in the space of about six weeks,” he said.

He said that many of his neighbours had suffered the same issues and they had received no satisfaction from Uisce Éireann.

“When you ring them, all you get is: ‘We understand, we understand, there’s ongoing works’, and that’s just not good enough when you can’t get a fresh cup of water out of your tap,” he said.

“Water should be a basic human right and this is just going on too long now.”

This week, Uisce Éireann told The Echo that, over the past two years, 95 people in Cork city had complained of illnesses suspected of having been caused by water consumption, compared to just one such complaint in 2020 and two in 2021.

The company said it had received 1,484 complaints of discoloured water from homes and businesses across the city in 2022, receiving 1,628 such complaints in 2023.

In December, the Environmental Protection Agency said it had “an open investigation file” on the issue of discoloured water in the city.

Five of Cork city’s eight TDs have called for a public meeting with Uisce Éireann, but a spokesperson for the company said it had not been invited to attend any public meetings in Cork city.

The water utility company said it had invited the city’s TDs to a presentation on November 24, but only three had attended. Similarly, it said that on October 26, it invited all Cork city councillors to a clinic to discuss ongoing issues, and only two had attended.

“Uisce Éireann is issuing updates to elected representatives as they arise in relation to water quality in Cork city. This includes when operational flushing works are taking place in their constituency,” the company said.

Uisce Éireann advised against drinking discoloured water, saying that if the water does not run clear after several minutes, people should call 1800 278 278.