A boil water advisory was issued Friday evening for customers of the Annapolis Royal water utility.
An emergency alert was sent out around 6 p.m., telling people to boil all water for at least one minute before using it. It said it is “due to the possibility of unsafe water.”
Water should be boiled before using it for drinking, washing food, preparing infant formulas and juices, cooking or dental hygiene.
This advisory will remain in place until further notice, according to the alert.
A notice posted on the town’s website said there was an “apparent contamination” of the water utility.
The town said in a Facebook comment that the utility does not currently have a closed system pumping from the tanker.
“Because the drinking water comes into contact with air, the advisory has been put in place,” it said. “By following the boil guidelines there should be no issues. We are attempting to resolve the situation as quickly as possible, and will post updates.”
A town staff member said in another comment that well water users should be unaffected by this situation.
On Tuesday, residents of Annapolis Royal were asked to conserve water as it makes repairs on the Granville Ferry water storage system.
Friday morning, the town said on Facebook that the issues “are more complex than originally diagnosed” and repairs could take up to two weeks.
“We are currently supplementing our system with truck-delivered drinking water, but the situation remains very serious,” it said.
“In order to ensure that all of our customers continue to have a safe supply of drinking water, we need everyone to use water for essential purposes only.”
According to the Annapolis Royal website, the county of Annapolis supplies water to and operates four water treatment plants in Margaretsville, Bridgetown, Granville Ferry, and Cornwallis Park.