A one-man business is struggling to cope with an urgent boil water alert that was issued for Geurie on Wednesday.
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Residents have been advised to use only boiled water for drinking, brushing teeth, for the washing and preparing food or beverages, when preparing baby formula, and for making ice.
The alert will remain in place until the quality of flows from the town's treatment plant returns to NSW Health standards.
Sunny Kumar, the only staff member minding the town's PitStop garage, has said the alert made for time-consuming work.
Since the garage also sells snacks and hot food, Mr Kumar has been spent his morning by the kettle to prepare for the day's dishes.
"It's very very hard to cooperate with [the alert]," he said. "I'm the only one here."
"I'm busy boiling water for the gravy," he said.
A similar alert was issued last year in Geurie, which led to Dubbo's water being monitored.
Mr Kumar hoped that authorities would come up with a more "permanent solution" for the problem.
"They should do something. We are not very used to doing this all the time, you know boiling water for use."
Becoming sick after accidentally consuming un-boiled water was also a concern for Mr Kumar.
"If we drink [tap water] by mistake, it's going to be harmful for everyone you know," he said.
Geurie residents have been advised to limit water usage while the precautionary alert is in place.
Residents are advised to boil water used for:
- Drinking
- Brushing teeth
- Washing and preparing food or beverages
- Preparing baby formula
- Making ice
Unboiled water may be used for:
- Showering and bathing but residents should minimise that amount of water taken into their mouth. As a precaution babies and toddlers should be sponge bathed.
- Washing dishes by hand or in a dishwasher provided dishes are air-dried before being used after washing
- Washing clothes
- The town's water filling station has been temporarily closed and token holders are able to use the water filling station at Wellington.
Special bottled water supplies will be delivered to Geurie Public School.
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