'It looks like gravy': Listowel residents question discoloured water

Some residents in Listowel are raising concerns after dealing with discoloured water.

Kelly Munroe said she’s had dirty water coming out of her taps since she moved to Listowel in 2018, but said Tuesday night was the worst she had ever seen it.

“It looks like gravy or soy sauce,” she said. “It looked thick, it smelled, not to be graphic, but it smelled like blood, so I know it was the iron.”

She said the brown water is staining her dishware and her clothes.

“I was really disgusted, I was frustrated,” she said. “How could this be happening when we pay our bill? You know, we’re not on a well.”

Several other residents on social media posted about experiencing dirty water.

The Municipality of North Perth said it does get complaints, and said the reason is from rust or iron in the water.

“There’s not a specific number that says it’s safe or unsafe – it’s an aesthetic value,” said Mark Hackett, Manager of Environmental Services with the Municipality of North Perth. “If it was really dirty water, I wouldn’t necessarily bathe in it or drink it.”

Hackett said there could be a variety of reasons as to why the water comes out dirty, such as a water main break, or water main flushing. However, he said in most cases, the issue is within in the home.

“The one we see the most is in our hot water,” Hackett said. “So it is in your hot water heater and there’s a method to go about draining the water heater every once in a while to get the sediment, the rust that’s settled out in the bottom.”

Munroe and some other locals said that’s not true, and are calling on the municipality to take more responsibility and more action.

“We have a plumber in the family as well who has come out and taken a look. How could it be in the household when we have copper pipes? Copper doesn’t rust,” said Munroe.

North Perth Municipality is asking residents to contact them when they do have dirty water so staff can start a work order and investigate the cause.