waybomb
Well-known member
BELLAIRE, Ohio – Thousands of residents of an eastern Ohio community were told to stop drinking tap water after workers at a chemical treatment plant accidentally added toxic hydrochloric acid to the water supply.
No serious injuries were reported.
Forty pounds of the acid were added to Bellaire's water Sunday after a supplier shipped the wrong chemical and the filtration system crew mistook the containers for fluoride. The mistake was discovered Monday morning when workers noticed fluoride levels were lower than normal.
"Unfortunately, the drums are all the same size and the same color," water department superintendent Kirk Baker said.
Baker said crews opened fire hydrants and drained the system to clean it.
"All I can say is it was an unfortunate accident and it won't happen again," he said.
Customers were urged to avoid using tap water, and Bellaire High School dismissed classes early. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency lifted a warning about 1 p.m. Monday.
About 2,400 people were affected by the contamination.
Joe Redinger, president of the supplier, Ohio Valley Chemical in Martins Ferry, said Tuesday the mix-up occurred at the shipping dock but he was unsure how. No one should be fired over such an error, he said.
Bellaire is about 120 miles east of Columbus, across the Ohio River from Wheeling, W.Va.
No serious injuries were reported.
Forty pounds of the acid were added to Bellaire's water Sunday after a supplier shipped the wrong chemical and the filtration system crew mistook the containers for fluoride. The mistake was discovered Monday morning when workers noticed fluoride levels were lower than normal.
"Unfortunately, the drums are all the same size and the same color," water department superintendent Kirk Baker said.
Baker said crews opened fire hydrants and drained the system to clean it.
"All I can say is it was an unfortunate accident and it won't happen again," he said.
Customers were urged to avoid using tap water, and Bellaire High School dismissed classes early. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency lifted a warning about 1 p.m. Monday.
About 2,400 people were affected by the contamination.
Joe Redinger, president of the supplier, Ohio Valley Chemical in Martins Ferry, said Tuesday the mix-up occurred at the shipping dock but he was unsure how. No one should be fired over such an error, he said.
Bellaire is about 120 miles east of Columbus, across the Ohio River from Wheeling, W.Va.
