Boil water notice lifted for Herald Island in west Auckland

Today, Watercare lifted the precautionary boil water notice for 271 properties on Herald Island in west Auckland after receiving a negative E. coli test result and confirming that the island’s drinking water is safe.

Chief Operations Officer Mark Bourne says the result is reassuring and confirms that the positive sample returned yesterday did not reflect a problem within the water network.

“We believe yesterday’s positive E.coli result was most likely caused by environmental factors during sample collection,” he says. “All other water quality results were normal, and today’s test confirms the network has remained safe throughout.”

Bourne says the boil water notice was issued out of an abundance of caution to protect public health.

“Our priority is always the health and wellbeing of our customers. While issuing a boil water notice can cause inconvenience, it was the right step while we carried out additional testing.”

Watercare is thanking Herald Island residents for their patience and understanding.

“We know this will have disrupted people’s routines, and we’re grateful for the community’s support. Our teams worked overnight to notify residents, provide bottled water, and ensure people had the information they needed.”

The boil water notice, issued last night for the island’s 271 properties, is no longer in effect and residents can now use their tap water normally.

“We’re pleased to be able to lift the notice and confirm the safety of the supply,” Bourne says.

Watercare will continue daily E. coli testing for the next two days before returning to the normal testing schedule.