Boil water order lifted in Saint John

The boil water order for east Saint John, in effect for six days, was lifted Monday after crews worked through the weekend to repair the line.

Dr. Scott Giffen, the region's medical officer of health, agreed to lift the order after "numerous water tests and water system analyses have demonstrated the water is safe to consume," the city said in a release issued at 12:10 a.m.

The city said anyone who kept their water running throughout the order could start using their tap water for cooking, washing and drinking immediately Monday, because the taps will have flushed out water that may not have been properly disinfected.

Residents who were away during the order are encouraged to run all of their taps for a few minutes to allow fresh water to flush their pipes.

The order, which was the third for the region this year, was put in place on June 2 after Saint John Water staff detected a break in a chlorine injection line at the Latimer Lake Water Treatment Facility.

Efforts to restore water to approximately 40,000 residents living east of the Reversing Falls Bridge could not start until Friday, because crews were waiting for the necessary parts to arrive from Toronto.

"One of the reasons for the delay in making the repair is we had to bring in special material from Toronto to give us the assurance that we needed for this type of highly chlorinated environment," explained Paul Groody, the city's commissioner of municipal operations.

The part that failed had only been installed six months ago, he said, and as a result he expects the manufacturer to cover all the repair costs.

The city does not anticipate similar problems with the new part. 

"We're satisfied that the equipment that is installed will be reliable and will give us good service for many years," Groody said.

Not a reason for privatization

Mayor Ivan Court said the latest boil water order is no reason to privatize the water system, in response to the news that Deputy Mayor Stephen Chase was expected to introduce a motion at Monday night's council meeting on a public-private partnership to run the system.

Court noted that the break was caused by a faulty part and not an error by city staff. Court said what is needed to solve the city's water problems is a joint effort between council members to try to fix the system.

"We're not individuals. We're 11 people who have been elected, that are supposed to be working for the common good. It's not for our private or personal views and so on, it's what's best for the citizens of Saint John," he told CBC News.

"We know what has to be done. Now we have to get the funds to make sure it does get done … You see citizens saying, 'Oh, fix that problem.' But when you are talking about two treatment plants costing up to $140 million, that's not happening overnight."

Court said it was "very clear" that residents don't want to see the system privatized, based on what he heard while campaigning.

He also said the city does not need private partners to qualify for federal and provincial funding.