Water bug outbreak hits Tennant Creek

Residents of the outback town of Tennant Creek are being urged to turn off the taps
and buy bottled water.
A water boil alert has been issued for the approximately 3,000 people who live in
the Northern Territory town, about 1,000km south Darwin, after E.coli bacteria was
detected in the community's water supply.
The NT Department of Health and Families (DHF) has urged locals to take
precautionary measures.
"It is recommended that water for drinking, food preparation and oral hygiene be
obtained from either packaged bottled water or by boiling tap water and allowing it
to cool," DHF environmental health officer Karen Beirne said on Thursday.
"Work is now under way by Power and Water Corporation to flush the water supply
system, monitor the chlorine in the system and ensure maximum disinfection occurs to
kill any bacteria present."
Ms Beirne said it was expected that the alert for Tennant Creek - the NT's fifth
largest town - would be cancelled "very soon".
Residents who experience symptoms of diarrhoea should seek advice from the health
centre or other health service.