HOULTON – Residents of the Houlton Mobile Home Park still must boil their water, but if tests taken Thursday come back negative, that order could be lifted by early next week.

E. coli bacteria were discovered last week in the water that serves about 40 trailers at the park. Residents were notified last Wednesday night, and the boil order was put in place on March 20.

Larry Girvan, northern Maine field services engineer at the state’s Drinking Water Program office in Presque Isle, was at the park Thursday, where he met with a representative of the park owners, Firehawk Enterprises LLC of Portland. Girvan took samples of water from one of the trailers for testing.

Sources of E. coli bacteria include leaky septic systems, animal or human waste and decaying organic matter. Side effects of drinking water with high levels of E. coli can include vomiting, diarrhea and nausea.

Girvan said Thursday that he couldn’t speculate on a possible source at the trailer park.

“It’s not possible to trace at this time,” he said.

The water system is private and has its own well. It is also reportedly in bad condition with numerous leaks.

Firehawk purchased the park this month from Timbers Development Group LLC in Auburn, which had purchased it from the previous owner last month.

According to Girvan, the chlorinator at the park well house was not working correctly, and the pumps were not maintaining pressure in the lines, both of which could have contributed to the E. coli problem. He said those problems have been fixed and that Firehawk is committed to correcting the problem with the water system as soon as possible.

“They are making efforts to get this headed in the right direction,” he said. “There’s been quite a lot of progress.”

One solution could be to reconnect the park water system to the municipal water system operated by the Houlton Water Co.