'Boil tap water' alert after bacteria discovery

People in parts of North Yorkshire have been told to boil their tap water after tests showed it contained high levels of a type of bacteria.

Yorkshire Water said it had issued a "boil order" for its customers in High Bentham, Low Bentham and Burton in Lonsdale following the discovery.

Routine testing of the water supply there revealed it did not meet "our usual standards" and people affected should boil tap water "until further notice", a spokesperson for the firm said.

A shopkeeper in Bentham told the BBC that since the order had been issued, she had "sold out of bottled water" on Sunday, while a member of staff at a hotel there said people in the area were "panic buying" bottles of water.

The Yorkshire Water spokesperson said the firm was "really sorry" about the results of its tests and was "working hard to resolve this issue".

In a statement, Yorkshire Water said "higher than usual levels of the coliform bacteria" had been discovered during routine tests of tap water in the area.

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The firm's spokesperson said boiling water would offer "sufficient protection", adding that they appreciated having to do so "can be inconvenient".

Yorkshire Water has been asked by the BBC to confirm how many properties in the area were affected by the "boil order" in total.

The manager of a shop in Bentham, who did not want to be named, said: "We sold out of bottled water yesterday.

"We sold about 88 individual bottles and 19 six-packs, but we've restocked today."

Meanwhile, a staff member at a hotel in Bentham, who also did not want to be named, told the BBC: "People are panic buying. We've been told to boil all our drinking water. I think it's because we've had so little rain lately."

Mohamed Ezzat, owner of G & Mo's Cafe in Bentham, said: "To serve customers who want drinking water, we are having to boil water then keep it cool in the fridge."

Bryan Jeffs, owner of The Black Pig Cafe, said he had stopped serving tap water altogether in favour of bottled water.

Mr Jeffs said people in the area had been notified about the issue through social media, texts on their phones and leaflets, but added that the information provided by Yorkshire Water "didn't really explain what the issue was".

A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said bottled water had been delivered to any customer on its priority services register.

Any property affected by the issue "has had a hand-delivered notice of the boil order", they said.

Bottled water stations had been set up at the Lair Gill Car Park on Butts Lane in High Bentham, the playing field on Wenning Ave in High Bentham, and at the Recreation Ground in Burton In Lonsdale, the spokesperson added.

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