Correction:
An earlier version of this story provided a wrong telephone number to Shane Twining, the village's drinking water distribution operator of record. The number listed below is correct.
HAYESVILLE — Residents of Hayesville are being advised to boil water before drinking it after officials said “disease-causing organisms” may have entered the supply.
Village officials issued the boil advisory Tuesday afternoon.
If residents of the village use water from the Hayesville Water Treatment Facility, they are urged to boil it before drinking it, or to use bottled water.
The advisory states “disease-causing organisms” may have entered the village’s water supply, but that there is “no evidence at this time that the water system is contaminated.”
“The possibility, however, does exist that the water system is contaminated and is issuing this advisory as a precaution,” the advisory reads.
Village Mayor Robin Beasley was not immediately available to comment.
Anne Strouth, Ashland County’s EMA director, said she received a text message from Beasley on Tuesday evening asking her to communicate with residents the need to conserve water.
By Wednesday morning, however, Strouth said she got another message. “I was told they need to boil their water.”
But the Ohio EPA required the village to issue a boil advisory.
The advisory said the water needs to boil for at least one minute and let it cool before drinking.
“Boiled water … should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes and food preparation until further notice,” the advisory reads. “Boiling kills bacteria and other organisms in the water.”
Those with severely compromised immune systems, infants and some elderly people could be at increased risk, reads the advisory.
“These people should seek advice about drinking water from their health care providers,” it reads.
The advisory states that village officials are “investigating and taking the necessary steps to correct the problem as soon as possible.”
Those with questions and requests for more information have been encouraged to call Shane Twining at 419-651-5483. Twining is the village’s drinking water distribution operator of record.
This is a developing story.