The youngest students at the South Butler County School District can once again wash their hands with warm water, according to the district superintendent.

The district found Legionella bacteria in August in the hot water tanks at the primary and intermediate elementary schools.

The hot water was turned off in both buildings in an abundance of caution, although the lower water temperature suitable for young students does not create steam, which is the catalyst for contracting Legionnaire's disease.

When school was in session, students, faculty and staff washed their hands in cold water, and extra sanitization measures were put into place because of the coronavirus pandemic.

A contractor specializing in water quality was called in and attempted to super heat the water to kill the bacteria, but the water tanks continued to test positive for Legionella.

David Foley, superintendent, said on Tuesday that during the entire Thanksgiving break, 160-degree water was allowed to flush through the hot water systems at the schools.

On Nov. 30, the systems were flushed continuously for eight hours.

“I am happy to report that we finally received clean test results,” Foley said.

School officials believe the source of the bacteria was the warm water left to stagnate in the water lines last spring and over the summer, which allowed the Legionella to grow.

“Moving forward, we will be attentive to keeping all of the district-wide water system flushed, so that we do not have a recurrence of the issue,” Foley said.

The water test results are available on the district's website by selecting “services,” then “buildings and grounds” and then “water test information.”