Wiesfleck residents told to boil drinking water after pump failure

Residents of Wiesfleck in Oberwart district must boil their drinking water before use after a pump failure disrupted supplies, ORF reports. Water is being brought in from other parts of the municipality and neighbouring municipalities.

The broken pump serves a local well that supplies about 800 people. Firefighters are transporting the replacement water, but their vehicle tanks are not sterile, Mayor Christoph Krutzler said.

Repairs will require crews to recover the pump, clean the 38-metre-deep well and install a new pump. Krutzler said the municipality hoped to resume normal operations by the weekend.

This is the second water supply problem in Wiesfleck this year. Elevated glyphosate levels were found in the Schreibersdorf district in spring. The suspected cause was a private well connected incorrectly, allowing its water to mix with the public supply. Regular samples taken since April have shown no further contamination, Krutzler said.