People living in the Stithians area have been issued with a boil your water before they drink it notice after it was claimed contaminated water got into the water system.

The notice was issued by South West Water yesterday to certain properties in the Truro area including Stithians and Frogpool.

The company is asking people who get the notice to not drink their tap water without boiling it and allowing it to cool.

People are being urged to do this for preparing or cooking food or cleaning their teeth. They say boiling water can be stored in a covered container or in the fridge for 24 hours.

They can continue to use water as normal for washing, bathing a toilet flushing.

“This is a precautionary measure and we will restore your water supply to normal as soon as possible and we will contact you as quickly as possible when these precautionary restrictions are lifted,” said South West Water. The notice said that affected customers will automatically get £15 in compensation.

People living in the area say that there was a repair going on yesterday at the Treskewes farm entrance. Another ongoing today by Jubilee Farm Carnkie, and that this may have been responsible.

One woman said her husband went out to speak to the person who delivered this letter last night and he told him there’s accidentally been untreated water let into the mains and it was a temporary precaution.

A South West Water spokesperson said: “Last night, we asked some customers in the Truro area to boil their water before consumption. This is a precautionary measure as we are aware of an issue that took place at our treatment works that may temporarily impact water quality. All households impacted by this precautionary measure have been notified and we will keep them updated accordingly."