Boil Water Order Lifted In Foxborough, Mansfield

FOXBOROUGH, MA — The boil water order has been lifted in Mansfield and parts of Foxborough, Mansfield officials announced.

Mansfield received notification of its third consecutive test absent of bacteria in the water distribution system, on Wednesday. The information was sent to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and was confirmed in writing.

"Therefore, the boil water order is lifted effective immediately," officials announced.

In a corresponding move, the town has canceled the free water distribution scheduled for Thursday.

Town officials included a few key steps to do before using the water, which are included in full here:

Flush All Taps

"When flushing, it is important to follow the instructions provided. Flush your household and building water lines, including:

Interior and exterior faucets, Showers, Water/ice dispensers, Water treatment units, etc.
Water heaters may need to be flushed to remove any contaminated water.

Some types of water treatment devices may need to be disinfected or replaced before being used. Check with the manufacturer for details."

For Cold Water Faucets: Run until the water feels cold, one minute or more, before drinking, brushing your teeth, or using for food preparation. If you have a single-lever faucet, set it to run the cold water first.

For Hot Water Faucets: "To clear hot-water pipes and water heaters of untreated water, change all faucets to hot water and flush for at least: 15 minutes for a typical household 40-gallon hot-water tank.

Hot water is then safe to use for washing hands, dishes, pots and pans, etc. Never use water from the hot faucet for drinking, rinsing your mouth, or cooking."

Dishwashers: "After flushing hot water pipes and water heaters, run the dishwasher empty one time."

Humidifiers: "Discard any water used in humidifiers, Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machines, oral, medical or health care devices. Rinse the device with clean water."

Food and baby formula: "Discard baby formula and other foods prepared with unboiled water on the days the boil order was in place."

Refrigerator water-dispensing machine: "Flush with at least one quart of water. If unsure of your dispenser’s capacity, refer to manufacturer specifications."

Ice cubes: "Empty automatic ice dispensers of ice made during the boil order and run through a 24-hour cycle. Discard this ice to assure purging of the icemaker’s water supply line."

The town of Mansfield issued a boil water order notice on Sunday, including some homes and residences across the Foxborough line. On Wednesday, Mansfield police announced that no bacteria was present in water samples collected on Sunday and Monday, meaning that if the sample collected on Tuesday comes back negative, the boil water order can be lifted.

E. Coli bacteria was found in Mansfield drinking water, which resulted in the town issuing a boil water order "until further notice." According to officials, the town must receive three negative daily tests of their drinking water supply for the order to be lifted.