A boil water notice has been issued for Woodville this afternoon after rodent droppings were found on rafters above the town’s treated reservoir earlier today.
Tararua District Council said the droppings were detected at the Woodville Water East Treated Reservoir this morning. A photograph shows the droppings on rafters above the surface of the water.
“To date, this is the first occurrence of animal entry into this reservoir,” it said in a post to Facebook.
Pests had previously been found inside the nearby Woodville Water West Treated Reservoir.
Residents were advised to boil water before using it for drinking, making ice, food preparation, brushing teeth, and preparing infant/toddler formula.
“People with severely compromised immune systems, infants, pregnant women, and some elderly may be at increased risk.”
The council said it had immediately increased water testing and initiated an investigation to identify entry points at the reservoir building.
“Routine sampling is ongoing and no contaminants such as E-coli have been detected in the water network. We are issuing the boil water notice until further investigation and testing is completed.”
A letter drop to the town’s residents would begin this afternoon.
In February 2024, a possum was located in the town’s water treatment tank, leading to a boil water notice being issued which lasted five days.
In April 2024, a dead possum was found in the reservoir, but a boil water notice was not issued.
The Water Services Authority, Taumata Arowai, issued a council employee with a written warning earlier this month following an investigation.
It said the council had undertaken work to improve pest management around the reservoir and that it was satisfied adequate pest control measures were in place.
Woodville, located east of the Manawatū Gorge, had a population of 1680 at the time of the 2023 census.
