Devon water crisis – live: Council leader suggests residents ‘stop paying bills’ as parasite infections rise
✕
Close
South West Water: ‘Boil water’ warning lifted for most homes across Devon after parasite outbreak
A council leader has reportedly suggested Devon residents stop paying their water bills as the number of people infected with a waterborne parasite continues to rise.
Water supplier South West Water (SWW) has been blamed amid fears drinking contaminated tap water is what has led to more than 100 residents falling ill in the area of Brixham in south Devon.
Speaking at a meeting of the South Hams executive committee, Devon Live reported Cllr Julian Brazil said: “I have been warned against civil disobedience, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be bringing it up.”
It comes as SWW said 14,500 households can now drink their tap water safely rather than having to boil it beforehand.
However, 2,500 properties in Hillhead, upper parts of Brixham, and Kingswear have been advised to continue to boil their water before drinking it.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said on Friday that 46 cases of parasite cryptosporidium had now been confirmed in the Brixham area of Devon, up from 22 cases on Thursday, and more than 100 people reported symptoms, including diarrhoea, stomach pains and dehydration.
Cryptosporidium is a diarrhoea and vomiting illness that can be caught by drinking contaminated water.
News of further confirmed cases comes after a health expert said residents should “expect to see further cases for at least 10 days to two weeks”.
Residents of the fishing town complained of a lack of contact with SWW and its chief executive, Susan Davy, was forced to apologise on Friday over the outbreak, saying she was “truly sorry”.
1716104222
Council leader suggests residents ‘stop paying bills’
A council leader has reportedly suggested South West Water customers should stop paying their bills amid a parasite outbreak in south Devon feared to have been caused by people drinking contaminated tap water.
Devon Live reported the leader of South Hams District Council suggested protesting against sewage spills in the form of mass civil disobedience might force the water company to step up.
Speaking at a meeting of the South Hams executive committee, Cllr Julian Brazil (Lib Dem, Stokenham) said local communities felt let down by SWW as he pledged to bring forward a motion in July considering the options open to the council to tackle the issue.
He said: “Not only do we have the health and environmental implications of tipping raw sewage into our water, but it also has a massive impact on our tourism industry. I have been warned against civil disobedience, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be bringing it up.”
However, Cllr Nicky Hopwood (Con, Woolwell) branded his Cllr Brazil’s comments over refusing to pay bills “irresponsible”. She said: “It puts people into debt. Then they get judgements against them. I would ask you not to say that in future. I wouldn’t like to see any resident withholding payment and then being chased through the courts for their money.”
Tara Cobham19 May 2024 08:37
1716100235
New cases could continue to appear for weeks
Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia (UEA), told the BBC that the parasite could be in the incubation period for up to two weeks.
“One of the problems when you’re investigating outbreaks like this is that the incubation period can be about 10 days to two weeks, so often in the past when I’ve been involved in investigating outbreaks by the time you know you’ve got a problem, the problem has resolved itself anyway, but you can’t guarantee that,” he said.
“Even if they have stopped all new infections by now, you would expect to see further cases for at least 10 days to two weeks.”
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 07:30
1716099052
Prime minister Rishi Sunak calls for probe
A spokeswoman from Number 10 has said that the prime minister “understands the stress and worry this has caused residents”.
“He’s very clear that this must be investigated thoroughly by the Drinking Water Inspectorate and UK Health Security Agency.”
“Any water company that’s found to be in breach of rules on drinking water should expect to face the appropriate enforcement action up to and including criminal prosecution.”
The government has announced a quadrupling of inspections and provided increased powers to Ofwat and the Environment Agency to hold water companies to account, the spokeswoman added.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 07:10
1716097852
Resident collapses from illness after parasite contamination in Devon water supply
A man says his wife collapsed after drinking water feared to be contaminated with a parasite.
The UK Health Security Agency said on Friday that 46 cases of cryptosporidiosis, a disease that can cause symptoms including diarrhoea and vomiting, had been confirmed in the town, and hundreds more reported symptoms.
Chaz Attwood told Sky News his wife had been ill for 16 days after drinking the contaminated water.
“My wife has been drinking water to keep hydrated because she’s diabetic and the insulin that she’s had to have has doubled, and basically that affected her to start with,” he said.
“So that’s made her worse. We’re in a dreadful state. She was so weak I even phoned 999, and told the guy what was happening because she’d collapsed.”
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 06:50
1716096610
Water supplier says damaged air valve ‘potential source leading to parasite in water network’
A damaged air valve on a pipe in a field containing cattle has been identified as a potential source leading to the existence of small traces of parasite in a local water network.
South West Water’s (SWW) chief customer officer, Laura Flowerdew, said it is possible that cattle manure caused the contamination.
“We have identified that there is a damaged air valve on our network just near the Hillhead reservoir but we absolutely want to make sure that that is the only source,” she told Sky News.
Asked if it was animal faeces that infiltrated the network, she said: “We understand that this is a valve on one of the pipes that head towards the Hillhead reservoir, not on the reservoir itself.
“It’s in a farmer’s field and I understand that there are cattle in that field and therefore there’s a possibility that that is therefore the source of the contamination.”
She added that work is still under way to determine the cause of the contamination but that the damaged air valve “does look like it’s a potential source”.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 06:30
1716095410
Devon MP calls water company’s reaction to crisis ‘contemptible’ and ‘incompetent’
Conservative MP Anthony Mangnall, whose Totnes constituency includes Brixham, said SWW’s response to the parasite outbreak in the seaside town had been inadequate.
“The predominant failure is the fact that earlier in the week, South West Water was asked whether or not this was to do with their network and they categorically ruled it out, only for them to change their position 24 hours later, which I think is contemptible and just generally incompetent - and it’s put a lot of people’s health at risk,” he told the PA news agency yesterday.
Mr Mangnall added that SWW had failed to “safeguard public health” and would “be absolutely on the line” to compensate local businesses which have lost money because of the outbreak.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 06:10
1716094210
Devon businesses suffer losses due to contaminated water crisis
As the UK Health Security Agency announced there had been 46 confirmed cases, with more than 100 people reporting similar symptoms on Friday afternoon, Keith Johnson, who runs Rio’s Fish & Chips, says he’s had no customers in the first hour-and-a-half of lunchtime opening, reports Alex Ross.
Johnson, who took over after moving from the West Midlands, says the outbreak of an illness caused by the parasite cryptosporidium has rocked the town.
“We’ve been blacklisted,” he says. “No-one is around, it’s so obvious. We usually get coach drops coming in during the week, but we’ve had nothing and the hotels have reported cancellations.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 05:50
1716093091
Residents unhappy with water company’s handling of the crisis
People living in the Devon area affected by the waterborne parasite outbreak are dissatisfied with the water company’s response to the situation.
South West Water (SWW) say they have found the source of the parasite and CEO Susan Davy said she was “truly sorry”. The company first announced £115 in compensation to affected customers, which has now been raised to an additional £100.
“It is typical of a corporate company throwing a small amount of money at the situation to try to keep people quiet,” caretaker Bryon Freer, who lives just 800m from the Hillhead reservoir, says.
Anthony Mangnall, MP for Totnes, a constituency which includes Brixham, said he was aware of concerns over the quality of drinking water in the town.
“I am very concerned about SWW’s response to this situation, as they have been slow to act and communication with customers has been very poor,” said Mr Mangnall.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 05:31
1716091483
Devon residents told tap water safe to drink without boiling
Thousands of households in Devon can safely drink their tap water without boiling it first, the area’s water supplier South West Water (SWW) announced after a parasite outbreak led to hundreds falling ill.
About 14,500 households in the Alston supply have been told they can drink their water safely, while 2,500 properties in Hillhead, the upper parts of Brixham and Kingswear still have to follow the advisory to boil their water before drinking.
The water supplier said that a “rigorous testing” of the water along with a consultation with the UK Health Security Agency and local authority’s environmental health department led to the decision yesterday.
SWW has also added that an additional £100 compensation, on top of the £115 that was announced earlier, would be paid to affected customers.
Close to 16,000 households and businesses in the region were told earlier this week not to use their tap water for drinking without boiling and cooling it first.
Shahana Yasmin19 May 2024 05:04
1716090055
Welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of Devon’s water parasite outbreak.
Rituparna Chatterjee19 May 2024 04:40