Over 2,000 residents in north Dublin have been ordered to boil all water after a contamination alert in six different areas.

Fingal County Council issued the notice after a set of laboratory test results failed to come back clear or state that the water was fit for consumption. The areas affected are Lanesborough, Melville, Meakstown, Charlestown, Seagrave and the Balseskin Centre.

Local resident Margaret Goodson says that the alert has had a serious effect on her family.

"I have a big family here and we have been affected by this very badly. My father is on medication for his heart and he has been running out to buy bottled water every time he needs to take it.

"My daughter last week came down with chicken pox and we were told to bathe her in carbonated water to ease the pain. Of course, there was no water and it was like something from Victorian times when we had to go and buy countless bottles of water to fill the bath up for her."

Although council spokeswoman Florence White said the chances of residents falling ill was "very low", Goodson says members of her family have reported having an upset stomach and feeling unwell.

"Besides my elderly parents telling me that they have upset stomachs, there were other hygiene issues. When the water supply was drained we found it very difficult to keep toilets flushed and cisterns clean."

Water tankers have been dispatched throughout the period of disruption, but residents have been issued with strict guidelines advising that those in affected areas should boil their water before washing food, brushing their teeth or bathing children.

"The place looks like a third-world country out here with people scrambling to get to water tankers the council has put around. It really is true that you don't know what you've got until it's gone," said Goodson.

Although the reason for the contamination is not fully known, White says it may be as a result of heavy rainfall flushing dirt into the reservoir. Two letters have been sent to the 2,000 residents and it is understood an emergency helpline set up by the council is receiving dozens of calls from worried and angry residents.

"As a public authority, our first priority at all times must be the protection of public health so even when contamination levels are very low as in this case we must take a very cautious approach and this is why we issued the boil notice to allow us to identify and remove any source of contamination," White stated.