Residents in Scituate, Massachusetts, are demanding answers after E. coli was detected in a town water sample and a boil water advisory was issued days later. The advisory has since been lifted, but some families say they are still dealing with the aftermath.
I'm Boston 25 news reporter Daniel Coates on scene in Scituate where
an E. coli related boil water order was lifted over the weekend.
But Thursday, some town residents tell me
they're still dealing with the aftermath.
People are calling this something around town.
Yeah, the Scituate.
It's been four days since Situate's boil water order was lifted,
but the E. coli chaos is still lingering.
Kind of scary.
A state lab detected E. coli in a water sample last Tuesday.
The town was notified about it a day later,
but emergency alerts across the community went out on Friday.
Situate leaders said they had to wait
for the state to retest the sample.
Which found coliform, prompting the order Friday afternoon.
It's absurd and unacceptable.
Bottled water handed out to the masses over
the weekend in Scituate Harbor.
37 minutes for me.
Jennifer Ward said she learned about
the order late Friday from a town sign.
She rushed home to her family and three dogs to stop all running water.
There was one dog bowl that I forgot to change at the time.
Saturday morning, she walked downstairs to a mess.
You know, it was as if they had all exploded.
We ended up bringing them to the vet, and, you know,
they were diagnosed with E. coli, all three of them.
But it's not just pets.
Megan Farrah told us her three-year-old daughter was sick all weekend.
She was clutching her stomach, doubled over.
She gave her pediatrician her daughter's symptoms,
who apparently said it's most likely E. coli.
If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck.
In a letter, the town administrator wrote,
we regret the anxiety and inconvenience
this situation caused for families across town.
Please rest assured that safeguarding our community's public health
and drinking water remains our absolute highest priority.
And community members expressed a need for better communication
from the town other than just social media posts.
Town leaders even acknowledged
that reverse 911 calls had difficulties over the weekend.
They tell me they're exploring ways
to make sure that this never happens again.
On scene in Scituate, I'm Daniel Coates
for your local station, Boston 25 News.
