This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
It will likely be at least another week before residents of the tiny Cache County town of Trenton can stop boiling their drinking water.
Anticipating that recent rain storms would wash wildlife fecal material into two of the six springs feeding the town's water distribution system, Trenton Water System Manager Marla Trowbridge issued a voluntary boil water advisory on Saturday.
That advisory became an official boil order on Monday, after testing confirmed elevated levels of E.coli bacteria in the two springs.
On Thursday, Trowbridge said work crews were installing shutoff valves where the springs feed into the system for roughly 500 people. Once that work is done, the process of sanitizing the system's lines and re-testing will take place well into next week, she predicted.
Trowbridge said the water is considered safe for showers and washing hands with soap. Otherwise — for drinking, brushing teeth, making coffee, washing food, etc. — the water should be brought to a full boil for at least a minute before use.
While Trowbridge hoped the boil order can be lifted by late next week, she cautioned that it could remain in place longer if problems arise — in particular if aging lines leading from the two springs should break. The springs have fed the system since the late 1930s.
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