The bacteria which causes the potentially deadly Legionnaire's Disease has been found at a leisure centre.
Chelmsford Council has revealed that the legionella bacteria was found in part of the pipework that feeds the showers at Riverside Ice and Leisure Centre in the town during regular testing.
The whole centre was immediately closed down as a precaution while the system was thoroughly sterilised.
But it has now been given the all-clear.
A statement from the council says before and after water samples from the pipework were sent to a public health laboratory for testing.
"These independent tests confirmed the presence of legionella bacteria in the 'before' samples but today have confirmed that following the sterilisation, the system is now completely clear of any harmful bacteria."
The centre itself was closed for seven hours on June 12 as a precaution when the bacteria was discovered but the showers have remained closed until yesterday.
The council's chief executive Martin Easteal said: "Our first priority is the health of users of Riverside and our staff. We are satisfied that any risk has been minimised."
Published Wednesday, June 25, 2003
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