The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) continues to supply bottled water for staff and those incarcerated at Minnesota Correctional Facility (MCF)-Stillwater. The DOC is bringing in bottled water while it waits for water test results from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH).

The DOC commissioner ordered a new and more extensive round of water testing and lab analysis on Sept. 7th to assure staff and the incarcerated population the water is safe to drink, said DOC spokesperson Andy Skoogman, who added that annual and monthly water testing by the MDH and a third-party lab have shown no indication of a health risk in the drinking water at MCF-Stillwater.

Skoogman said staff and the incarcerated population are going through approximately 9,000 bottles of waters per day. The first shipment of more than 50,000 bottles of water were delivered on Saturday, Sept. 9. An additional 12,000 bottles were delivered on Monday, Sept. 11 and another 20,000 will arrive at the facility today.

On Monday, Sept. 11, staff from the Minnesota Department of Health drinking water program collected water samples at 84 locations throughout the prison, including faucets in living units, the facility’s kitchen, programming areas, the chapel, and several staff areas.

The MDH will analyze the samples for contaminants, including bacteria, metals and total suspended solids. The source of the water to the facility is a set of two wells. The DOC expects MDH to complete its laboratory analysis by the beginning of next week.

Skoogman said the results of the testing will help the DOC identify and implement a longer-term water management strategy and reiterated that there have been no water-related illnesses reported among staff or the incarcerated population at MCF-Stillwater.