VILLAGE OF MAYVILLE, N.Y. (WKBW) — Neighbors in the Village of Mayville will have to continue using bottled water for drinking and preparing food for the time being. Chautauqua County health officials say although "tremendous progress" has been made on the work being done to lift the "do not drink" water advisory, issued on December 10, there is still a lot of work left to be done.
The advisory was issued after a chemical contaminant, perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), was detected in the Public Water System wells.
The county health department provided an update on its progress Wednesday. County and state health department officials, along with those in the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, say they put the village's Well #4 into service Monday.
That well is supplying the village's water system with clean water as the Village flushes its water system and replaces the storage tank water with water from Well #4. County leaders expect the process to take a few days.
Once the flushing process is complete, residents will have to flush the plumbing systems in their homes. Health department officials say you can expect to see discolored, cloudy water as these activities are underway. They say this is normal.
The county also sent out letters offering private well sampling to 30 homes with private wells near areas of concern on Monday. Health department workers plan to start collecting those samples as early as Saturday, December 19 and will have results back to neighbors as soon as possible.
In the meantime, the village will continue distributing bottled water for neighbors at the following times and locations:
- December 17-19: 10:30am - 12:30pm and 4:30pm - 6:30pm; Town of Chautauqua Highway Building
- December 18: 2:30pm - 6:30pm; Tops parking lot, Mayville
- December 20: 10:00am - 2:00pm; Tops parking lot, Mayville
The Village says it is keeping ample bottled water reserves on-hand and will get more from the state if the "do not drink" advisory lasts past the weekend.
Anyone with questions about the advisory or any other health concerns pertaining to the water in the area should contact the state Department of Health or Chautauqua County:
- For information about drinking water and health effects, contact NYS DOH Bureau of Toxic Substance Assessment at 518-402-7800.
- For more information about drinking water quality, contact NYS DOH Bureau of Water Supply Protection at 518 402-7650.
- General information is available at www.chq.gov [chq.gov]. E-mail inquiries can be directed to waterreports@co.chautauqua.ny.us.
