Residents and businesses in Charlestown have been warned not to consume municipal tap water without first boiling it, after trace levels of E. coli were detected in the area’s water supply.
The Newcastle Municipality issued the public health advisory on Thursday, 2 July 2026, following routine microbiological testing on the municipal potable water reticulation network serving Charlestown.
According to the Municipality, the detection of E. coli points to possible faecal contamination in the affected water network.
“The presence of E. coli indicates potential faecal contamination. As a precautionary measure, the water supplied through the affected network should not be considered safe for direct consumption and may pose a health risk if consumed without appropriate treatment,” said the Newcastle Municipality’s Communications Unit.
As a precaution, residents have been urged to immediately boil all municipal tap water for at least one minute before using it for drinking, cooking, brushing teeth, washing food, or preparing baby formula.
Alternatively, residents should use safe bottled water.
The Municipality further warned that untreated tap water should not be used for any purpose that could involve ingestion until the advisory has been lifted.
At the same time, officials confirmed that emergency interventions have been activated in response to the contamination. These include flushing the water network, increasing chlorination, and intensifying water quality sampling in an effort to restore safe supply conditions.
“This advisory will remain in place until consecutive laboratory test results confirm that the water complies with the required drinking water quality standards,” said the Communications Unit.
The Municipality also apologised for the inconvenience caused, stating that it remains committed to protecting public health through water quality monitoring and corrective action.
However, the latest warning does not stand on its own.
It follows recent concerns raised by the Department of Water and Sanitation, after the Department tabled its 2025 Full Green Drop, Blue Drop and No Drop Progress Reports before Parliament on 9 June 2026.
As reported by Newcastillian News on 11 June 2026, the Department assessed two primary water supply systems within Newcastle Municipality, namely the Newcastle Water Supply System, linked to Ngagane, and the Charlestown Water Supply System.
The combined design capacity of the two systems was listed at 132 ML/day, against an operational flow of 108.45 ML/day, indicating that the overall supply system was operating within capacity. However, the Department’s findings drew a clear distinction between the performance of the two schemes.
The Newcastle Water Supply System remained classified as low risk, despite its risk rating deteriorating slightly from 28.4% in 2023 to 32.96% in 2025.
According to the Department, the system continued to show operational stability, operating within design capacity, maintaining adequate flow monitoring, and recording 100% microbiological compliance. Microbiological monitoring stood at 96.3%, while chemical compliance reached 97.7%.
Charlestown, however, presented a far more concerning picture.
The Department’s report showed that the Charlestown Water Supply System had declined sharply, moving from a low-risk rating of 32.9% in 2023 to a high-risk rating of 88.1% in 2025.
According to the Department, this regression was linked to failures in both microbiological and chemical compliance, along with insufficient technical capacity and the absence of an effective Water Safety Plan.
The report also confirmed that infrastructure damage had worsened the situation, with the Charlestown package plant having been vandalised and subsequently bypassed.
As a result, the area has been reliant on a combination of groundwater abstraction and tanker-delivered supply from the Newcastle system.
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For Charlestown residents, the immediate priority is to follow the Municipality’s advisory until laboratory results confirm that the water is safe again.
This means boiling municipal tap water before any form of consumption, or using safe bottled water where possible.
While the Municipality has moved to implement corrective measures, the situation now places renewed attention on the state of Charlestown’s water infrastructure, the effectiveness of ongoing monitoring, and the speed at which safe supply conditions can be restored.
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