Boil Water Notice Lifted in Bellefonte Area

A boil water notice for that had been in effect for some Bellefonte area residents for two days was lifted on Friday afternoon.

Bellefonte Borough Water Authority customers in the Borough of Bellefonte and Spring Township were under the notice since Wednesday afternoon, after testing found that the water did not meet disinfection requirements. The required disinfectant residual concentration is .85, but samples collected on Wednesday showed a disinfectant residual concentration of .01.

Concentration levels were restored to .85 the same day, but the authority had to wait for testing confirmation before lifting the notice.

A message to residents on Friday stated the problem was corrected and the notice was lifted as of 3:40 p.m.

While the notice was in effect, affected customers were told to boil water first or use bottled water for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes and food preparation.

Disinfectant residuals, according to the Environmental Protection agency, protect against microbial contaminants, act as an indicator of distribution system upset and limit growth of bacteria within the distribution system.

Inadequately treated water may contain disease-causing organisms that can cause symptoms including as diarrhea, nausea, cramps and headaches.