Tag: Emergency

Report: W.Va. is Prepared for Public Health Emergencies

West Virginia is prepared for public health emergencies. That’s according to a report out Thursday.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation says in the 2017 National Health Security Preparedness Index, West Virginia scored 6.7 out of 10 in the state’s capacity to prepare for, respond to, and recover from health risk emergencies. That’s about the national average for preparedness.

Glen Mays is a professor of Health Policy at the University of Kentucky, and he’s been involved in the preparedness index over the past two years. He says West Virginia has been making big improvements – mostly in Community Planning and Engagement for a public health crisis.

“There we measure the strength of communication relationships and coordination mechanisms between government and private sector and community organizations that need to play a role in health security,” Mays said.

He says the June 2016 floods that killed 23 people and left thousands homeless may have caused this sharp uptick in health security preparedness in West Virginia.

But where the state still struggles to keep up with the rest of the nation is in the areas of Health Security Surveillance, being able to detect health hazards quickly, and in Incident and Information Management, or the ability to respond rapidly to crises.

Mays says this is due, in part, to the state’s rural geography, and he says both of those areas require specific resources and state-of-the-art technology.

“West Virginia may need to take a look at its existing technology and infrastructure and see whether there’s some unmet needs there,” he noted, “There may be investments that need to be made and upgrading technology and systems to support those kind of activities.”

By having its strong foundation in Community Planning and Engagement, however, Mays says the state is on the right track for further improvement.

Appalachia Health News is a project of West Virginia Public Broadcasting, with support from the Benedum Foundation, Charleston Area Medical Center and WVU Medicine.

West Virginia Officials Investigate Coal Miner Death

West Virginia officials are investigating the death of a coal miner.

State Department of Commerce spokeswoman Leslie Smithson says preliminary information suggests the miner at the Leer Mine in Grafton may have suffered a medical condition. She says a full investigation is under way by the state Office of Miners’ Health, Safety and Training.

WBOY-TV reports an emergency call to the Harrison-Taylor 911 Center was made at 4:15 a.m. Monday.

The miner’s name wasn’t immediately released.

It marks the second reported death at a West Virginia coal mine this year. A miner died in an accident at a Wyoming County mine on Jan. 4.

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.

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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