Europe
Areas surrounding Army bases in Baumholder under boil water notice
Stars and Stripes
November 18, 2024
A boil water notice due to bacterial contamination has been extended to 35 communities in the Birkenfeld District. This includes the city of Baumholder but not the U.S. Army garrison there. (Stars and Stripes)
A boil water notice due to bacterial contamination has been extended to 35 communities near the U.S. Army’s posts at Baumholder, Birkenfeld District officials announced Sunday.
The Army’s drinking water supply is separate and unaffected by the order, service officials said in a message Friday, when the first 12 areas were put under notice. This is the second such warning from the district since August.
Many service members, civilian workers and their families live in the rural villages and towns near the installations, where in the coming years the Army is moving its special operations forces from Stuttgart, along with supporting commands.
New construction and renovations at the bases are expected to cost approximately $1 billion.
On Sunday, the following villages in the Birkenfeld association of municipalities were added to the notice: Siesbach, Rötsweiler-Nockental, Wilzenberg-Hussweiler, Meckenbach, Achtelsbach, Dambach, Hoppstädten-Weiersbach with the districts of Neubrücke, Ellweiler and Gimbweiler.
In the Herrstein/Rhaunen community, Niederwörresbach has been under the boil water notice since Thursday. Several more areas were added Sunday: Herborn, Veitsrodt, Oberwörresbach, Vollmersbach, Mörschied, Herrstein, Niederhosenbach, Oberhosenbach, Breitenthal, Hettenrodt, Mackenrodt, Kirschweiler and Weiden.
Most of Baumholder’s association of 14 communities were put under the boil water notice Friday. Only the villages of Reichenbach and Frauenberg were exempted because they receive their water from a different source, according to the Idar-Oberstein health department order.
The boil water notice in the affected areas applies to any water used for drinking or meal preparation, including rinsing of food containers. Water used for brushing teeth or medical care also should be boiled, according to a Birkenfeld District statement.
In August, Birkenfeld issued a similar notice for 53 municipalities after enterococcus bacteria found in a water treatment at Herrstein-Rhaunen indicated fecal contamination. The boil water order continued for days as workers tested the water.