Brainerd boil water order lifted after test reveals coliform is now absent
BRAINERD, Minn. -- A boil order in Brainerd was lifted Wednesday afternoon after new tests revealed an absence of coliform.
The public utilities company had been working to flush out millions of gallons of the contaminated water, as Brainerd's 5,000 customers were ordered to boil their water.
The utilities company will continue the chlorine feed to the water supply, and staffers will keep sampling for total coliform contamination to meet the EPA's Safe Drinking Water Act. It will be up to the Public Utilities Commission to consider permanently treating the water with chlorine.
Boil orders have happened before in Brainerd; the city is among the few municipalities in Minnesota to not treat their water. According to officials, their standard testing protocol on Aug. 7 revealed the presence of total coliform, a bacteria that sometimes signals the presence of other bacteria like E. coli.
Brainerd does add flouride to its water to promote dental health.