PEARL, Miss. (WJTV) – The City of Pearl was placed under a State Imposed boil water alert. This comes after E. coli was found in the city’s drinking water.

According to the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH), water sampling showed the presence of the bacteria. The systemwide notice was issued on Thursday, June 27.

“Right now, we’re just trying to expedite samples to get a partial, part of the city on the west side back up off of a boil water notice,” said Pearl Mayor Jake Windham.

The mayor said the city passed out bottled water to businesses in the community. Tristan Clark, who works at Little Willie’s BBQ, said the bottled water was a big help.

“We kind of already we’re able to work around it just fine. So, you know, like not able to do any of like our soft drinks or anything like that. But we’ve managed to like work around with like our other drinks for sure,” said Clark.

According to MSDH, fecal coliforms and E. coli are bacteria whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal wastes. Microbes in these wastes can cause short-term effects such as diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches or other symptoms. They may pose a special health risk for infants, young children and people with severely compromised immune systems.

“I mean, certainly boil your water until we give you the all clear. Don’t use any of the water directly out of the tap. Oh, you can shower. We had questions about that. Showering is A-okay, as long as you’re not going to drink the water or swallowing either water while you’re in the shower,” said Greg Flynn, spokesperson for MSDH.

This precaution will last at least two full days, and water system officials will be immediately notified when the boil water alert is lifted.