The LSU Department of Campus Safety has disabled all of the water fountains in the LSU System Building on West Lakeshore Drive because of a small amount of bacteria found in the water supply.
Danny Mahaffey, the facility planner for the building, said a small amount of bacteria was found in the water lines last week.
“We cleaned out all the lines this weekend,” Mahaffey said. “The levels of bacteria were so low that they weren’t considered harmful, though.”
Matt Philpott, the biological safety manager for Campus Safety, said he was contacted after complaints that there were particulates, or small objects, in the water.
“The particulates did not appear to be organic, but we collected samples and sent them off for testing,” Philpott said. “The results came back showing bacteria slightly higher than it should be.”
Philpott said Campus Safety shut down the water fountains and began the clean-up process this past weekend. Workers flooded the water lines below the System Building with water with higher levels of chlorine to eliminate the bacteria.
Philpott said the rest of campus seemed immune to the contaminated water.
“We tested the water from around campus and in the adjacent fraternity houses and didn’t find any other contaminations,” Philpott said. “All of the water comes from the city’s general water supply, so we’re not sure where the bacteria came from.”
Campus Safety still is unsure as to how the water became contaminated, but Philpott said they may have to dig below the building to check water lines for breaks.
“Usually these bacteria are found in the digestive tracts of animals and the soil. This bacteria is generally a warning that there are more dangerous organisms in the water,” Philpott said.
Philpott is not sure when the System Building will be able to use its water supply again.