All asylum seekers being housed onboard a controversial barge are being removed because of potentially deadly bacteria in the water system, it has been confirmed.
Home Office sources said legionella had been identified on the Bibby Stockholm, the 222-bedroom hulk hired by the Home Office as part of a £1.6bn immigration deal.
The first asylum seekers boarded on Monday, and by Friday there were 39 onboard the vessel, which is docked in Portland Port, Devon.
People can get lung infections, such as legionnaires’ disease or Pontiac fever, if they breathe in small droplets of water in the air that contain the bacteria. No one has so far been identified as contracting the disease.
A Home Office spokesperson said environmental samples from the water system on the Bibby Stockholm had shown levels of legionella bacteria that required further investigation.
“As a precautionary measure, all 39 asylum seekers who arrived on the vessel this week are being disembarked while further assessments are undertaken. No individuals on board have presented with symptoms of legionnaires’ [disease], and asylum seekers are being provided with appropriate advice and support.”
They said the samples related only to the water system on the barge and there was “no direct risk indication” for the rest of Portland. They were not related to fresh water entering the vessel.
The Home Office was working with the UK Health Security Agency, Dorset council’s environmental health team and Dorset NHS .
Several people refused to board the vessel last week amid warnings from the Home Office that they would face having government support removed if they did not.
On Wednesday, Robert Jenrick described the barge as “perfectly decent accommodation”, despite earlier warnings from the Fire Brigades Union that the vessel was a “death trap”.