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 | | Thursday, 11 October, 2001, 17:00 GMT 18:00 UK Alert over water-borne bug  The bacteria can cause vomiting and diarrhoea Health authorities across north-west England have been alerted after a routine sample of drinking water contained unusually high levels of bacteria which cause stomach infections. The bug leads to vomiting and diarrhoea, and in a small number of cases can be more serious. One sample at a water treatment works in the Lake District showed levels of cryptosporidium four times higher than the usual amount. The Dunmill Raise treatment works near Grasmere supplies much of the water for the North West.
As a precaution the NHS executive in the region has asked health authorities, family doctors and public health laboratories to report any rise in cryptosporidium-linked illness. Professor Qutub Syed, an epidemiologist for the North West region said: "The action taken is purely precautionary and at this stage there is no evidence of increased levels of illness in the community." Continous monitoring Helen Lord, a press officer for water supplier United Utilities, also stressed that the alert was precautionary. She told BBC News Online: "It is one sample only, so we do not want to start alarming people. "All the other samples have been fine, and it is a continuous monitoring process. "There is no cause for concern, the water is safe to drink, and we are acting on the advice of the health authorities. "We abide by very high drinking water standards." she added. There have been several incidents of people being affected by the bug in the North West in recent years. In one case about 450 people reported illness. | | See also:  Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top England stories now:  Links to more England stories are at the foot of the page. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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