Tests that showed E. coli in Isle aux Morts water were false positives, says town official

An Isle aux Morts town official is chalking up a recent E. coli scare in the water to false positive and says the water is safe to drink.

On Saturday the town on Newfoundland's southwest coast announced the water from its water building and taps was safe to drink after testing positive for traces of E.coli a few days earlier.

Deputy Mayor Thomas Herritt said both tests were false positives after government officials retested both water supplies on Friday and informed the town on Saturday of the good news.

"The water's good to drink — it's the same as normal or as it always was," he told CBC News on Tuesday.

He said on Monday morning the town reopened its water building, which had been closed since Wednesday.

Herritt said the last few days caused a lot of concern among the town's 560 residents, many of whom are seniors.

"But now everything is getting back to normal. Everybody seems happy. They're out getting their water jugs filled up and doing what they always did."

Herritt said the town's monthly testing protocols will stay the same despite the false results, but advised people to notice any changes that concern them.

"I'd just like to tell everybody that the water is safe, it's been tested and it's come back good," said Herritt.

"We're keeping an eye on things and if they see something that's out of the ordinary, just let us know and we'll check into it and see what we can do."

He believes the town acted promptly when faced with the possibility of E.coli exposure in the water, which included informing residents to dump any water they'd stored from the town reservoirs and bringing in bottled water for residents.

"In no time at all we had things going and moving," he said.

Herritt said after government officials told them the water was safe, the town got to work making the announcement to residents, through social media and the town's website.

"Most of the seniors were called because they don't have computers," he added.

Disagreement over tap water test

Speaking on behalf of the Department of Digital Government and Service N.L. and the Department of Health and Community Services, spokesperson Gina MacArthur said testing of the water building last week showed the "possible presence of E.coli." 

The building was closed to the public as a precautionary measure, she said.

"Digital Government and Service N.L. will continue to follow established protocols for testing municipal water supplies in Isle aux Morts and will work with the community should testing results identify any public health concerns," MacArthur wrote in an email to CBC News.

MacArthur also reiterated that the town's tap water never tested positive for the bacteria.

Herritt maintains a test on tap water did come back positive, but says that result was false.

Download our free CBC News app to sign up for push alerts for CBC Newfoundland and Labrador. Click here to visit our landing page