The boss of a water company which left hundreds of people with diarrhea from a parasite in the water has said she is 'truly sorry' for the cryptosporidium outbreak in south Devon.
Around 16,000 people have been told to boil their water before using it in Brixham, Boohay, Kingswear, Roseland, and northeast Paignton after a faulty water valve allowed animal waste and groundwater into the drinking supply. A total of 22 cases of cryptosporidium are currently confirmed, with over 100 people approaching their GP with symptoms in the past week. Schools in the area have also been closed after they were left with no drinking water.
Symptoms from the parasite are particularly nasty, and include severe watery diarrhoea, stomach pains, nausea or vomiting, a mild fever, and loss of appetite. The illness can last anywhere from a few days up to a month.
South West Water CEO Susan Davy, who took home a salary of £543,000 for the 2022/23 financial year, said in a new statement: "To those in the affected area and our customers across the South west, I am truly sorry for the disruption and wider anxiety this has caused. While incidents like these are thankfully very rare, our customers expect a safe, clean and reliable source of drinking water. I know on this occasion we have fallen significantly short of what you expect of us.
"All of us at South West Water live and work in the region, just like you. It is our home and a place we love. I am sorry this has happened. I promise you that we will not stop working until the situation has been resolved and drinking water returns to the quality level you expect." The firm's CEO said:"Your health and safety is our first and foremost priority."
She said their ground technicians have been working around the clock to identify the source of the contamination in the Hillhead area of Brixham. Ms Davy added that bottled water has been delivered to vulnerable customers, businesses and schools as well as local residents. She also confirmed that £115 compensation will be made to consumers saying:"I understand the significant impact the boil water notice has had on daily life."
Cases of cryptosporidium, a waterborne disease caused by a microscopic parasite, will be seen in the Brixham area of Devon for at least the next 10 days, a professor has said. Asked if for lots of residents the parasite could still be in the incubation period, Paul Hunter, professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia (UEA) told BBC Breakfast: "Absolutely.
"One of the problems when you're investigating outbreaks like this is that the incubation period can be about 10 days to two weeks, so often in the past when I've been involved in investigating outbreaks by the time you know you've got a problem, the problem has resolved itself anyway, but you can't guarantee that. Even if they have stopped all new infections by now, you would expect to see further cases for at least 10 days to two weeks."
Customers who have been struck down with the parasite said they fell ill and drank water because they were dehydrated - only to find the water was making them more ill. One local man from Furzeham posted on a community Facebook page that he and his family had been sick since last week, affecting their daily lives and work. He said: "It has not been a nice experience. We have had diarrhoea and vomiting, severe stomach cramps, high temperature and gunning a fever". The UK Health Security Agency South West said it was working with Torbay Council, South West Water, NHS Devon and the Environment Agency to investigate the issue.