14,358 Users are Urged to Boil Water Prior to Drinking

SANTA FE –The New Mexico Environment Department’s (NMED) Drinking Water Bureau (DWB) is confirming the required “boil water advisory” for the Artesia Municipal Water System and Morningside Water Users Cooperative.
More details about precautions in English and Spanish can be found on the DWB’s webpage at: https://www.env.nm.gov/drinking_water/boil-water-advisories/

Artesia Municipal Water System is required to issue the advisory today after bacteriological contamination (E. coli) was detected in repeat drinking water samples from the Artesia Municipal Water System’s distribution system. Additionally, the boil water advisory is extended to the Morningside Water Users Cooperative due to the fact that Morningside receives 100 percent of their drinking water from the Artesia Municipal Water System. Artesia Municipal Water System and Morningside Water Users Cooperative are required to notify water system consumers of this finding.

Artesia Municipal Water System is a community public water system that serves approximately 14,000 people and the Morningside Water Users Cooperative is a community public water system that serves 358 people. Both public water systems are located in Eddy County.

This advisory applies to the drinking water from the Artesia Municipal Water System and Morningside Water Users Cooperative, and does not extend to the Artesia Rural Water Cooperative or any other surrounding water systems.

Consumers of the Artesia Municipal Water System and Morningside Water Users Cooperative are advised to boil the water for one minute (3 minutes if above 6,500 feet in elevation) before drinking, cooking, washing fruits and vegetables, feeding a baby, brushing teeth, preparing drinks, making ice, and providing drinking water for pets.

The presence of E. coli in water indicates that the water may have been in contact with sewage or animal wastes, and could contain disease‐causing organisms. Most strains of E. coli are harmless and live in the intestines of healthy humans and animals. However, a positive test for E. coli in the drinking water supply may indicate the presence of dangerous strains of E. coli or other disease‐causing organisms. These types of organisms may cause severe gastrointestinal illness and, in rare cases, death. Children, the elderly, and immuno‐compromised individuals are at an increased risk for illness.

The NMED DWB will provide compliance oversight and technical assistance to the water system as necessary with staff onsite early next week. NMED requires the Artesia Municipal Water System to continue to test the water until no further threat of contamination remains.

For more information, please contact NMED Drinking Water Bureau Southern Area Supervisor Brandi Garcia at (575) 915‐1113.