UNITED Utilities has lifted the boiling water advice in parts of Chorley.

Three weeks after informing more than 300,000 households that they needed to boil drinking water, UU is writing to customers in certain parts of Chorley, Blackpool and Preston to tell them they can now drink from the tap as normal.

However the advice to boil water still remains in place in Mellor, Mellor Brook and Abbey Village, as well as some parts of Chorley, and customers affected are advised to visit www.unitedutilities.com or call 0800 912 7241 to check what their situation is. 

The start of the process to lift the boil notice in certain areas follows ongoing measures by United Utilities – a combination of flushing the water network, moving water from other parts of the network and installing UV light rigs to destroy the last remaining traces of the Cryptosporidium bug.

United Utilities is in daily discussion with health and scientific experts to review the latest position and it may be possible to lift the boil water advice in some further parts over the coming week. 

Gary Dixon, customer services director at United Utilities, said: "We’re working tirelessly to ensure we can lift the boil notice for our customers as quickly as possible and we are grateful for their ongoing patience and understanding.

"We are hoping to lift further areas in the coming week but only when we are completely satisfied that the there is no risk to public health."

Due to the early introduction of the boil water notice Public Health England says that there have been no confirmed cases of sickness linked to the water supply at this stage.