Oslo, Norway Water Unsafe
Heidi Ertzeid
Photo: The Giardia Parasite
Citizens were warned Wednesday not to drink tap water in the capital after the discovery of potentially dangerous parasites in the drinking water supply.
The red zone shows the area of Oslo served by the Oset water treatment facility.
PHOTO: Vann- og avløpsetaten
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On Tuesday the Oslo Department of Water and Sanitation discovered the microscopic Giardia lamblia and cryptosporidium parasites at three locations in the Storo district, an area that along with 80 percent of the capital gets its drinking water from the Oset water treatment plant.
"This is the same bacteria that caused the drinking water epidemic in Bergen," Food Safety Authority district chief Kjetil Berg told Aftenposten.no.
The Giardia epidemic in Bergen in the autumn of 2004 caused at least 6,000 to fall ill and 150 still suffer from nausea, pain and digestive problems.
"After discussions with the FSA, the City's Health and Welfare division and director of communicable disease, a decision has been taken to advise all residents to immediately begin boiling water for at least three minutes before using it for drinking, cooking or brushing teeth," the Department of Water and Sanitation said in a press release Wednesday morning.
Berg said that he felt the warning had been issued quickly considering that meetings had been held through the night after word of the infection arrived at 11 p.m.
The parasites stem from human or animal excrement.
"One can get stomach and intestinal infection. Symptoms can include stomach pain, diarrhea and pyrosis (heartburn). From Bergen we have unfortunately seen that increasing numbers are ill for an extended period and have symptoms of exhaustion," Berg said.
Authorities are taking extensive samples in an effort to map the extent of the outbreak, and could not say how long residents would need to boil tap water. Use of ice cubes or drinking filter or machine coffee are also discouraged.
Aftenposten's Norwegian reporter
Heidi Ertzeid
Aftenposten English Web Desk
Jonathan Tisdall