Drinking water from the Fountains/Fuentes on Primitivo

[unadara]

I've just returned from the San Salvador/Primitivo and have got Giardia from drinking untreated Water. I filled a bottle in Tineo as the Bar owner said it was good water/better than his Tap. There has been a lot of very heavy rain and just like here in Ireland sometimes the Tap water is not safe to drink. In future I will only buy Bottled water or carry a Filter type fillable bottle. I was lucky that I was able to walk most days and it did not entirely ruin my Camino. I heard some other Pilgrims were sick also. perhaps not related to water.

 

[davejsy]

I've just returned from the San Salvador/Primitivo and have got Giardia from drinking untreated Water. I filled a bottle in Tineo as the Bar owner said it was good water/better than his Tap. There has been a lot of very heavy rain and just like here in Ireland sometimes the Tap water is not safe to drink. In future I will only buy Bottled water or carry a Filter type fillable bottle. I was lucky that I was able to walk most days and it did not entirely ruin my Camino. I heard some other Pilgrims were sick also. perhaps not related to water.

Sorry to hear you got ill, but glad you still managed to walk.

Giardia can also be spread person to person and caught from contaminated surfaces, so it might not have been from the water for sure?

 

[J Willhaus]

Sorry to hear you got ill, but glad you still managed to walk.

Giardia can also be spread person to person and caught from contaminated surfaces, so it might not have been from the water for sure?

My friend and her family got it from her dog.

 

[Bristle Boy]

This thread has coincided with a recent thread concerning a norovirus on the meseta anywhere between Burgos and Carrion. Whilst the forum becomes an echo chamber listing the causes it is rarely, if ever (and is nigh on impossible to) ascertain what caused an outbreak with absolute certainty.
Spain is indeed a 21st Century country with an infrastructure to match. Some parts of it are not however. Many of the water spigots and outlets do not come under the same scrutiny and monitoring that a mains water supply would do.
It is here that I hold my head in my hands and wonder if much has been learnt concerning virus control over the last few years. The washing of hands,, the isolation when the first sign of infection is noticed, the separation of contact (with a mouth shield), the ventilation of enclosed shared spaces. All these help to minimise the spread.
The second concern is the habit of treating Spain as an open latrine. I'm sorry to be blunt but this is a habit that needs to stop. Even buried faecal waste can contaminate underground water sources which contribute to the public water system. Out of sight and out of mind does not work when it concerns public health and bodily waste should be disposed of within the system designed to do so.

 

[bullingtonce]

This thread has coincided with a recent thread concerning a norovirus on the meseta anywhere between Burgos and Carrion. Whilst the forum becomes an echo chamber listing the causes it is rarely, if ever (and is nigh on impossible to) ascertain what caused an outbreak with absolute certainty.
Spain is indeed a 21st Century country with an infrastructure to match. Some parts of it are not however. Many of the water spigots and outlets do not come under the same scrutiny and monitoring that a mains water supply would do.
It is here that I hold my head in my hands and wonder if much has been learnt concerning virus control over the last few years. The washing of hands,, the isolation when the first sign of infection is noticed, the separation of contact (with a mouth shield), the ventilation of enclosed shared spaces. All these help to minimise the spread.
The second concern is the habit of treating Spain as an open latrine. I'm sorry to be blunt but this is a habit that needs to stop. Even buried faecal waste can contaminate underground water sources which contribute to the public water system. Out of sight and out of mind does not work when it concerns public health and bodily waste should be disposed of within the system designed to do so.

Kudos for bring up these points as I am guilty on some of them. Chuck