Britain’s Thames Water tests samples amid contamination fears after illnesses reported

Dozens of people reportedly become unwell with stomach cramps, vomiting and diarrhoea in south-east London forcing Thames Water to send some samples of water for lab testing.

Earlier this month, local media reported that people in Devon were urged to boil their water due to concerns about contamination earlier this month. It was followed by over 100 cases of a waterborne illness that were apparently linked to contaminated drinking water. At least 46 cases of cryptosporidiosis were also confirmed in and around the town of Brixham in South West England.

Cryptosporidiosis is caused by the parasite cryptosporidium. The infections can be caused by drinking contaminated water or swallowing contaminated water in swimming pools or streams.

Addressing Beckenham, Thames Water said in a post on X that they can confirm there are no failures from the Central Sydenham water zone. It said that their technicians collected samples from a property in the area on Tuesday (May 22) following customers contacting them.

Thames Water said that initial on-site testing carried out by an accredited technician did not indicate an aesthetic issue with the water. However, further samples were also collected for laboratory analysis and the results showed no concerns.

"We take the quality of our water extremely seriously – it is the highest quality drinking water in the world – and since 2010 more than 99.95% of tests taken from customers’ taps met the standard required by UK and European legislation," Thames Water said.

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Thames Water is a British private utility company that is in charge of the water supply and wastewater treatment in the majority of Greater London, Luton, the Thames Valley, Surrey, Gloucestershire, and north Wiltshire. It also supplies water to far west Kent and some other parts of England.

On its website, Thames Water wrote, "We work hard to improve the quality of your drinking water. Every year we carry out more than 500,000 tests. We take samples from our water mains and pipes, as well as from customers' taps. Since 2010, more than 99.95% of tests taken from customers’ taps met the standard required by UK and European legislation."

(With inputs from agencies)