Students evacuated after bacteria found in Keble’s water supply
A hartmannella cell entraps a Legionella pneumophila bacterium
Students living in a Keble staircase have had their rooms quarantined after a potentially dangerous strain of bacteria was discovered in the water supply. A number of second year undergraduates were told that they could not move into their accommodation due to the health risks. Thirteen were re-housed in spare rooms in Keble, but the rest were forced to decamp to nearby colleges, including St Hugh’s, St Catherine’s and Lady Margaret Hall.
The students will not be able to return to their rooms until 2007. College authorities and environmental health officers reacted quickly to isolate the bacteria and prevent students from falling ill. Keble Bursar Roger Boden said, “The health and safety of our students must, of course, be our overriding concern, hence the decision to keep the staircase in question out of use until we are absolutely certain that the problem has been dealt with.
Keble JCR President, Paul Dwyer, was one of the students forced to decamp after his room was sealed. He said, “I was moved out of college for freshers week and first week. The college’s maintenance has been dealing with it, they’re still doing work • the floorboards are all up.” St Hugh’s is currently hosting four Keble girls in spare accomodation. Martin McCluskey, JCR President, said, “The four girls are still here, but Paul Dwyer has gone back to college.
I know he was champing at the bit to get back because he had a lot of JCR work to be doing.” Eaton Environmental Services, who are responsible for managing the college’s water supply, have been working with the Keble maintenance services to rectify the problem. Directors of the company declined to comment. The bacteria was discovered in August after a conference guest died from Legionnaires Disease in August, just days after leaving Keble.
The guest did not contract the disease from the College, and no traces of legionella were discovered in Keble, but investigators did discover unsafe levels of other bacteria. Oxford’s Environmental Health department and the Health and Safety Executive have been monitoring the situation and have said they are satisfied with the progress being made. The bacteria was detected in one of the College’s eighty water systems, and it has not spread to the rest of the site.
Mark Bailey, a second year at Keble, said, “People are aware of the bacteria problem, but I dont think people are too concerned about it. Clearly people who have been moved out feel inconvenienced.” Boden said, “We are most grateful to these colleges for their assistance and to the students affected for their patience and understanding.
It is thought that the build-up was a result of the lack of insulation in the pipework, which dates from the 1970s, and the installation of a new heating system meant that cold water temperatures in the system rose to a dangerous level. The hot weather experienced in July exacerbated the problem, with the water temperature rising to over 20 degrees. Bacteria thrives in temperatures of between 20 and 40 degrees.
2nd Nov 2006