The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection has issued a boil water advisory for four buildings on the Wellesley College campus after finding samples of bacterial contamination in the form of E. coli and Total Coliform.
People living or working at Weston Terrace, Fiske House, the Wellesley Community Children’s Center, and the Child Study Center have been advised to boil water before consuming it. Water contamination of this ilk can cause short-term effects, such as diarrhea, cramps, nausea and headaches. The Globe quotes a Wellesley College spokeswoman saying that there have been no reports of sickness from the contamination.
The water finding is limited to those four buildings and not anywhere else on campus or in town. Wellesley College plans to provide updates on the situation here.
The water contamination recalls August 2014’s Great E. coli outbreak in the town of Wellesley that had residents scrambling for bottled water for a couple of days. At that time, Wellesley College was spared the problem since it has its own water supply.