All tap water at the University of Rhode Island’s main campus, in Kingston, should be boiled before using, state health officials advised yesterday, after tests found fecal coliform bacteria in the water system.

“We immediately started chlorinating on Friday,” said Robert Vanderslice, spokesman for the Department of Health. “Chlorine kills the bacteria, but now we just want to be extra careful,” he said of the boil-water advisory.

The advisory will remain in effect until tests confirm the bacteria is gone, Vanderslice said.

The bacteria was found during routine weekly tests on Friday, but wasn’t confirmed until yesterday. The advisory is confined to the university’s water system, which is separate from the system that serves nearby communities.

“We’ve run our system for decades,” said J. Vernon Wyman, assistant vice president for business services. “We have had this experience [before], but it’s very infrequent.”

According to the advisory, water from the tap should be boiled for one minute prior to using. Boiled or bottled water should be used for drinking, cooking, food preparation, brushing teeth, making ice and bathing infants.

Fecal coliform bacteria is a found in human or animal waste, and normally shows up in storm water or water that is discharged from treatment plants, Vanderslice said. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the bacteria are normally harmless, but can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches and other symptoms.

The university began adding chlorine to its system Friday afternoon after a test discovered the bacteria in the campus’s biological sciences center building, Wyman said. Notices were placed on every campus building, Wyman said, as well as on the school’s Web site and its emergency storm line.

“We’ve tried to be ahead of it, and to be precautionary about it,” Wyman said.

The dining halls began boiling water for food preparation and providing bottled beverages for meals yesterday, Wyman said.

The university will also have bottled water available in front of the Student Union from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today for students, faculty and staff, Wyman said.

tbuford@projo.com