Residents Had Been Advised to Boil Their Drinking Water Until Further Contamination Could Be Prevented

Drinking water in Borgarfjörğur eystra has been declared safe again after E. coli bacteria were detected in the supply last week during routine testing by the East Iceland Health Inspectorate (Heilbrigğiseftirlit Austurlands). Residents had been advised to boil their drinking water until further contamination could be prevented. Work to address the contamination had been underway for several months, and this is not the first time E. coli has been detected in the area.

When these conditions arose, we expedited the connection of a UV disinfection device to protect against this bacterial contamination, said Ağalsteinn Şórhallsson, managing director of HEF veitna in East Iceland. The new UV device is intended to prevent further contamination in the water source by inactivating the bacteria and preventing them from multiplying, though it does not kill them outright.