Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
MAGNA — A boil order enacted after a raccoon was discovered in a Magna Water District storage reservoir was lifted Friday morning.
Test results from water samples taken Wednesday and Thursday showed no harmful bacteria in the system as of Friday, according to a news release from the district. The water is safe to drink directly from the tap, the release said.
"Providing safe, reliable drinking water is our top priority at Magna Water District. Despite finding no evidence of harmful bacteriologic contaminants in our system, we felt it was better to be safe than sorry and proceed with this precautionary measure," Friday's news release said. "We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your patience."
The water district has a limited amount of water bottles available at the district office, 8885 W. 3500 South, the release says. District staff will continue distributing the water bottles Friday until 4 p.m. or while supplies last.
The boil order was instituted as a precaution and included all of Magna and parts of West Valley City (between 7200 West and 5600 West, and 2820 South and 2100 South) and Salt Lake City (between 7600 West and 7200 West, and 2100 South and 1300 South) according to a news release.
Residents were asked not to drink water straight from the tap. Instead, they were asked to boil tap water for 5 minutes and let it cool before using it.
Upon discovering the animal, a Thursday news release says, "operators immediately removed the raccoon and isolated the reservoir from the distribution system and began sampling for bacteriologic contaminants."
Officials determined the raccoon likely entered the system after a contractor removed a screen on a tank overflow drainpipe while making construction improvements. The contractor was notified and "immediately reinstalled the screen."
"The condition of the raccoon also indicates it had not been in the tank long before it was discovered and removed," the release says.
Chlorine levels were "found to be above minimum requirements" in the tank after the raccoon was discovered, the Thursday release says.
