Motueka people are being urged by the Tasman District Council to be careful and drink only boiled water.

It said that in the most recent evaluation of the water sample in the town, it discovered presence of E. coli strain in the water but was of a squat level.

As a precautionary measure, it is suggesting people residing in Motueka to consume only clear boiled water.

The advice given by the council says that people must boil water for one minute, whether the water is being used for drinking or preparing food, washing dishes, bathing, or teeth cleaning.

Contractors are assisting the council to locate the root cause of the contamination where they would be going on further with their testing process all over the weekend.

Today, the Norton water department learnt that a water sample that had been collected on 15th September from Well #4 showed positive results to E. coli test, which is fecal indicator.

This is one of the five wells that is a supplier of water to the water system set up in the town. The well had to be turned off after officers came to know about E. coli finding.

Microbes in tainted water can cause cramps, diarrhea, nausea, and many other symptoms.