Tag: Elk River Chemical Spill

What is Crude MCHM?

For the latest in understanding the chemical compound Crude MCHM that was leaked into the Elk River, we reached out to the West Virginia Water Research Institute.

Paul Ziemkiewicz, Director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute, describes the chemical leaked from Freedom Industries into the Elk River, Crude MCHM, as a kind of detergent used to clean coal, a surfactant.

“You’re trying to separate the coal from the non-burnable stuff like shales, clays, stuff like that,” Ziemkiewicz says. “The process takes advantage of the fact that coal is lighter than these clays and rocks, but they have to be separated. So you use these surfactants to help that separation process.”

He says that water ends up in slurry impoundments, and then often is recycled to wash more coal.

Ziemkiewicz says he would be surprised if the reported 2-5k gallons would be getting into water supplies in concentrations that are “acutely toxic,” meaning that small amounts ingested could potentially make someone very sick. Given the amount leaked, over the hour it was leaked, and the flow of the Elk River, Ziemkiewicz estimates concentration levels of about 40miligrams/liter.

Ziemkiewicz explains that there are primary drinking water standards that regulate chemicals that pose serious health risks, and that Crude MCHM wouldn’t be on that list. He says as a foaming agent it would fall in the secondary drinking water standards which are regulated at about half a milligram/liter. Secondary standards, Ziemkiewicz says, are more to regulate aesthetic issues such as color, taste, and texture. He says while ingesting Crude MCHM poses few health risks, it is considered an irritant.

“My estimates would indicate that the concentration getting to the water intake of the water distribution system would be well above that because they’re both on the same side of the river and it may not have mixed 100 percent by the time it got to the water intake. So given all that, I think it was prudent to shut down the water system,” he says.

Ziemkiewicz speculates that the compound was likely distributed into the far reaches of the water system before it was shut down. The time it will take to thoroughly flush the system is perhaps the biggest and most challenging concern by his estimation.

ZiemkiewiczMCHM.mp3
Unedited remarks from Paul Ziemkiewicz, Director of the West Virginia Water Research Institute.

Noon Newscast on West Virginia Water Emergency: Beth Vorhees, Ashton Marra, & Dave Mistich Report

Major questions remain in the chemical spill from Freedom Industries, Inc. in the contamination of West Virginia American Water supplies across nine…

Major questions remain in the chemical spill from Freedom Industries, Inc. in the contamination of West Virginia American Water supplies across nine counties. West Virginia Public Broadcasting news director Beth Vorhees interviews Mark Glass from Downstream Strategies, Ashton Marra reports on the recent press conference at West Virginia American Water, and Dave Mistich gives a run down of activity on social media.

Stream the audio above to find out the latest from our Charleston news bureau and be sure to follow @wvpublicnews.

You can also follow our entire news staff from this public Twitter list. 

5 Things We Don't Know About Drinking Water Emergency in West Virginia

UPDATE: Monday, January 13, 2014 5:30 a.m.

As of this morning. more than 300,000 people who are customers of West Virginia American Water are being told NOT to ingest, cook, bathe, wash or boil water.

Why? A chemical spill Thursday of 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol from Freedom Industries in Charleston.

On Friday, we asked five questions about the spill. Since then, we have some answers, and even more questions.

1. How harmful is this chemical to drink or breathe?

We still don’t have a definitive answer on this, although West Virginia Public Broadcasting’s Glynis Board has this great story about Crude MCHM. The Centers for Disease Control gave state officials a standard of 1 part per million as safe, but it’s still unclear where that came from. As Board reports, it could be because Crude MCHM is not considered acutely toxic, so it is regulated under secondary drinking water standards of .5 milligrams per liter.

2. How much of this chemical entered the Elk River? When did the spill start?

Timeline:

7 a.m. – 8 a.m.: People in area start complaining about the smell. 

10:30 a.m.: Freedom Industries President Gary Southern said his employees discover the leak. Apparently, no one from the company notifies state or local officials, or calls the spill hotline, as required.

11:05 a.m.: After receiving odor complaints from residents, DEP officials show up at the site. Freedom Industries had not called to report the leak to them.

12:05 p.m.: Freedom Industries report spill to hotline.

As for when the leak started: it’s not known yet exactly when. But since Crude MCHM has such a low odor threshold, state environmental officials think residents started smelling it very soon after it started leaking into the Elk River.

3a. Why can’t we determine how much of this chemical is in the drinking water supply?

At the time of the spill, state and water officials had no good way to quickly test for Crude MCHM. Since then, the West Virginia National Guard and state health and environmental officials have worked at breakneck speed to develop a reliable test and brought the testing time down to under 20 minutes per sample.

3b. Why are we allowing chemicals to be stored so near a major water source, especially when we apparently have no way to test for it in the drinking water?

West Virginia American Water officials say they were not aware this chemical was being stored 1.5 miles upstream. Freedom Industry had filed a required Tier Two Emergency and Hazardous Chemical Inventory form, but according to the Wall Street Journal, a local emergency planner and a spokeswoman for the water company both say they never saw it.

4. Is exposure to this chemical in the air or water making anyone sick? From DHHR Secretary Karen Bowling at press conference Sunday: 10 people admitted to hospital, 169 people were treated and released. No deaths have been blamed on the spill as of Sunday evening. WV Poison Control received more than 1,000 calls.

5. Why was the “Do Not Use” order issued at least 10 hours (and perhaps more) after the spill started? The Do Not Use order wasn’t issued until the 5 o’clock hour. Earlier that afternoon, West Virginia American Water officials said the treatment plant could handle the contaminant. Why did they change their minds? Did pressure from Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin and other state officials influence the company’s decision to issue the Do Not Use order? Or did new facts on the ground, like growing knowledge of the extent of the contamination, lead them to issue the order?

BONUS Big-Daddy-of-Them-All Question: When will it be safe to use the water again? Flushing is beginning, with priority going to regions that have large hospitals, but it could take days for everyone in the region to be told they can use their water again.

ORIGINAL POST: Friday, January 10, 9:06 a.m.

Our news team is trying to get you the answers you’re asking for about this spill. Here are some of the questions we still have — what are yours?

1. How harmful is this chemical to drink or breathe? There’s lots of scary information on the web about direct exposure to 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol. But what about exposure at the levels being experienced in the air and water?

2. How much of this chemical entered the Elk River? When did the spill start? People started complaining about the smell early Thursday morning, in the 7 o’clock hour. The source of the leak, Freedom Industries, did not immediately report the spill to authorities.

3. Why can’t we determine how much of this chemical is in the drinking water supply? West Virginia American is supposedly testing the drinking water, but they say the tests are “inconclusive.” Why are we allowing chemicals to be stored so near a major water source, especially when we apparently have no way to test for it in the drinking water?

4. Is exposure to this chemical in the air or water making anyone sick? Some people have turned up in hospitals complaining of symptoms, but it’s hard to know if they are related.

5. Why was the “Do Not Use” order issued at least 10 hours (and perhaps more) after the spill started? The company did not report it, and even when state officials investigated in the midday Thursday, the Do Not Use order wasn’t issued until the 5 o’clock hour. And why did West Virginia American Water officials at first say they could treat the water, then change their minds?

BONUS Big-Daddy-of-Them-All Question: When will it be safe to use the water again? Officials say they just don’t know.

Where to Find Water: A List of Distribution Centers

As the National Guard joins Governor Tomblin as well as various county, state, and federal authorities in helping those affected by the state of emergency due a chemical leak and water advisory, we here at West Virginia Public Broadcasting will do our best to keep you informed on water distribution centers and filling stations as they become available.  Below is the most up-to-date list of these centers we have.

If there is an open distribution center not listed here: please email: dmistich@wvpublic.org

Updated: Saturday, January 11, 2014 at 5:42 p.m.

An interactive map of available water in Kanawha County and surrounding areas can be found at: http://wvfindwater.com/

Updated: Saturday, January 11, 2014 at 11:14 a.m.

Kanawha County

Dunbar Kroger Plaza
Lakewood Volunteer Fire Department
Alum Creek Volunteer Fire Department – Sand Plant Station
Loudendale Volunteer Fire Department
Chesapeake Volunteer Fire Department GeStamp Stamping Plant – South Charleston
Malden Volunteer Fire Department
Marmet Recreation Center
Sissonville Volunteer Fire Department
Clendenin Volunteer Fire Department
St. Albans West Side Fire Department Station
Nitro Fire Department
Tyler Mt. Volunteer Fire Department
Crossings Mall – Elkview
Glasgow Volunteer Fire Department
Pratt Volunteer Fire Department
Belle Volunteer Fire Department
Charleston Fire Department – Station 1 Morris Street
Charleston Fire Department – Station 2 West Washington Street
Charleston Fire Department – Station 8 Orchard Manor
East Bank Volunteer Fire Department

Putnam County

The old Buffalo High School

911 center in Winfield (behind the courthouse)

Putnam Career and Technical Center, Eleanor

Route 34 Volunteer Fire Department

Poca High School

Frazier’s Bottom Fire Station 

Hurricane Fire Department

Lincoln County

Hamlin Volunteer Fire Department, 8049 Vine Ave., Hamlin

West Hamlin Volunteer Fire Department, 121 Guyan St., Hamlin

At 9 a.m., several locations will open to provide water:

Lincoln Primary Care Center, 7400 Lynn Ave., Hamlin

Midway Elementary School, 267 Midway Road, Alum Creek

Lincoln Public Service District Plant, 240 Little Coal River Road, Alum Creek

Logan County

Sharples Fire Department

Boone County

When water arrives, it will be available at the county’s maintenance garage, across from the courthouse in Madison as well as the Madison Fire Department

Jackson County

Ripley Fire Department and Kenna Fire Department

Goldtown Community Church, Kenna

Roane County

Walton Fire Department

Spencer Fire Department

Updated: Friday, January 10, 2014 at 8:30 a.m.:

Centers in Kanawha County are beginning to open:

Saint Andrew United Methodist Church

815 Kanawha Terrace

St. Albans, W.Va.

Bartlett-Chapman Funeral Home

409 6th Avenue St. Albans, W.Va.

304-727-4325

Emergencies only until Friday morning – Opens at 7 a.m.

Chapman Funeral Home

3941 Teays Valley Road

Hurricane, W.Va.

304-757-7531

Emergencies only until Friday morning – Opens at 7 a.m.

Saint Marks Episcopal Church

405 B Street

Saint Albans, W.Va.

Will open at 7 a.m. Friday.

West Hamlin Volunteer Fire Dept.

121 Guyan Street

West Hamlin W.Va.

Please bring your own container.

Hamlin Volunteer Fire Department

8049 Vine Ave.

Hamlin, W.Va.

They are giving out one case of water to each household that comes to their station.  Each household must show that they live in one of the affected areas.

Lincoln Co. 911 Call Center

911 Marconi Dr.

West Hamlin, W.Va.

This center is being operated by the National Guard.

Boone County 911 Center

1267 Smoot Ave.

Danville, W.Va.

This center is being operated by the National Guard.

Wharton-Barrett Volunteer Fire Department

35279 Pond Fork Rd.

Wharton, W.Va.

Crossing Baptist Church

2031 Harrison Avenue

Saint Albans, W.Va.

West Virginia Division of Highways HQ

Route 60 and Walnut Street

Saint Albans, W.Va.

Please bring you own container.

Culloden Volunteer Fire Department

2102 3rd St.

Culloden, W.Va.

State of Emergency, Water Advisory Issued for 9 West Virginia Counties

Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has issued a state of emergency and West Virginia American Water is telling more than 100,000 customers (about 300,000 people) in Boone, Cabell, Clay, Jackson, Kanawha, Lincoln, Logan, Putnam, and Roane counties NOT to ingest, cook, bathe, wash or boil water.  Water in this coverage area is okayed ONLY for flushing and fire protection. The advisory comes as a result of a chemical spill of 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol from Freedom Industries, Inc.

Various water distribution centers and filling stations are beginning to open in the areas affected by the water advisory/state of emergency. For a the most up-to-date list available, please refer to this list

Updated: Monday, January 13 at 7:55 a.m.:

At a Sunday afternoon press conference Governor Tomblin said there is “light at the end of the tunnel” as he was joined by other state officials and West Virginia American Water President Jeff McIntyre. McIntyre indicated that water will be returned soon to those affected  and testing of water samples were headed in the right direction. The company is setting up a website and automated phone calls to let residents know when their designated zone is approved for the flushing process.

Some restaurants, bars, and other businesses have also been allowed to begin reopening after applying for conditional approval through the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department. 

Updated: Sunday, January 12 at 5:00 a.m.:

At a press conference Saturday night, Col. Greg Grant of the National Guard said the amount of chemical present is trending downward with each test, but must be consistently below 1 part per million for a 24 hour period before West Virginia American Water can begin to flush their piping system.

“What we’re looking at is a broad spectrum of data that gives us a composite look at this water over a period of time to make sure it’s safe,” he said at a press conference Saturday night, “and those data points are showing that we are moving in the right direction.”

Grant said his teams would collect more than 100 samples overnight from the treatment plant and throughout the system to increase the data set and give them more accurate information.

“These individual samples are like a puzzle piece. We have a bunch of puzzle pieces, but we don’t have the picture yet,” added West Virginia American Water President Jeff McIntyre.

An outside contractor has been hired to help expedite the testing process of these samples, a process they’ve narrowed down from 46 to 18 minutes.

McIntyre said it will still likely take days to flush the system even if they have the proper data set Sunday, but customers should not start flushing their own plumbing now.

Updated: Friday, January 10, 2014 at 5:45 a.m.:

Reporters around the Kanawha Valley say West Virginia American Water continues to test the water for safety reasons. Still no conclusive results.

Updated: Friday, January 10, 2014 at 5:29 a.m.:

After consulting experts in the field of toxicology, West Virginia Department of Agriculture state veterinarian Dr. Jewell Plumley said late Thursday evening that at this time there are no known associated risks to livestock that may have been exposed to potentially contaminated water from a chemical leak that impacted the West Virginia American Water plant in Charleston.

Updated: Friday, January 10, 2014 at 5:02 a.m.:

The Associated Press reports that the effects of the chemical spill are far-reaching around the Kanawha Valley and surrounding areas. Restaurants are closed, children are staying home from school and state lawmakers have suspended their just-begun session.

Officials say they’re still trying to determine the extent of any possible contamination from the spill.

Updated: Friday, January 10, 2014 at 12:50 a.m.:

Through a news release, the Kanawha County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management announced they are working with State Emergency Officials to obtain water for public distribution:

"Officials will continue to work to obtain the water throughout tonight.  Emergency Officials will meet at 6:00 a.m. to assess the amount of water that has been received or is being received and will then release information as to the location of the distribution centers for the public."

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 10:55 p.m.:

The West Virginia National Guard just confirmed that two drinking water distribution centers are now open.

They are:

  • Lincoln Co. 911 Call Center (bring your own container)
  •  Boone Co. at 1267 Smoot Ave. in Danville.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 9:34 p.m.:

Gov. Tomblin has expanded the state of emergency to 9 counties. They are the following:

Tomblin also noted in a news release that residents served by Lincoln PSD, Queen Shoals PSD, Reamer PSD, City of Culloden PSD, and City of Hurricane PSD are also affected by the advisory.
 

“West Virginians in the affected service areas are urged NOT to use tap water for drinking, cooking, washing or bathing,” Gov. Tomblin said.

“Right now, our priorities are our hospitals, nursing homes, and schools. I’ve been working with our National Guard and Office of Emergency Services in an effort to provide water and supplies through the county emergency services offices as quickly as possible.”

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 9:02 p.m.:

West Virginia American Water has released the following map to illustrate the areas affected by the water advisory. The areas shaded blue inside the red circle are currently  under the advisory.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 8:23 p.m.:

West Virginia American Water now says Culloden in Cabell County has been added to the list of areas affected by the DO NOT USE water advisory.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 8:03 p.m.:

West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources Cabinet Secretary Karen L. Bowling has clarified that if residents have consumed the water late this afternoon and are experiencing severe symptoms to contact the poison center at 1-800-222-1222.
 
Severe symptoms include: severe burning in throat, severe eye irritation, non-stop vomiting, trouble breathing or severe skin irritation such as skin blistering.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 7:55 p.m.:

West Virginia American Water has expanded the areas affected by the water advisory to Logan, Roane, and Clay counties.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 7:40 p.m.:

Larry Messina of the Department of Military Affairs and Public Safety says fresh drinking water will be distributed to county emergency services offices and then distributed to the public from there.

Updated: Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 6:15 p.m.:

The Associated Press reports that Governor Tomblin has issued a state of emergency for all 5 counties effected by chemical spill into the Elk River.

West Virginia American Water released the following statement at 6:20 p.m. Thursday, January 9.

PUBLIC HEALTH NOTICE: CUSTOMERS IN THE KANAWHA VALLEY WATER SYSTEM are instructed to DO NOT USE THEIR TAP WATER UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE. Today, a chemical spill occurred along the Elk River, causing contamination in the Kanawha Valley water system. The entire Kanawha Valley water system is affected, including parts of Kanawha, Boone, Putnam, Jackson, Lincoln and Clay counties. There is a probability that your water is contaminated. Testing has not occurred to confirm or deny the presence of contamination in your water. DO NOT USE THE WATER. Due to the nature of the contamination, it is not safe to use the water for any purpose. Alternative sources of water should be used for all purposes. Bottled water or water from another, safe source should be used for drinking, making ice, brushing teeth, washing dishes, bathing, food and baby formula preparation and all other purposes until further notice.

Original story posted Thursday, January 9, 2014 at 6:02 p.m.:

Gov. Tomblin is making  announcements via his official twitter account:

Through a news release, the Kanawha County Commission Emergency Management says a product leak of 4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol at Freedom Industries on Barlow Dr. is responsible for the contamination of the local water supply.

Local health department officials are urging restaurants and bars to close immediately:

Bottled water at local grocery stores was flying off the shelves almost as soon as the advisory was announced. Here’s a photo from the Foodland on Spring St. in Charleston:

By 6:45 other retailers were out of water, too:

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