Louisville Water monitoring Ohio chemical spill

Now that Ohio train derailment turned chemical spill and its impact on drinking water, we know Louisville Water is currently monitoring the spill, bringing in scientists to detect possible chemicals in our water. And we’ll have more on that in just a moment. But first, the impacts closer to the spill, where neighbors say they aren’t getting the information they need. Linda Murphy lives in East Palestine, roughly 3 miles from Ground Zero and just up the hill from Leslie Run Creek. There were several dead fish floating at multiple locations. Long Leslie run. The Murphys have well water, but

right now they’re not touching it. That’s what we bathe in, that’s what we drink, that’s what we cook with, and that’s what I also give to my animals. So it was a major concern and they could not reassure me that the water was safe to drink. They didn’t say it wasn’t, but they absolutely refrained from saying that it was. Linda got one of her horses out of town, but Burt refused to step onto a trailer. Obviously it might not be instantaneous where there’s a result. This could be long term. For years and years, their neighbors,

Joe and Amanda White, worry about their well water too. They just returned home after a night away with a case of bottled water to share with their golden retriever, Murphy or Wells,

300 feet down if it could have got into our wells. In our drinking water, yeah. Or how long? If it’s not in there now, is it gonna be in there in a week? Is it gonna go, you know, because everything’s going to seep through the ground. It has to go somewhere. The Ohio EPA tells me they have not seen anything at this point to

suggest private wells would be impacted. Groundwater protection plants will be considered as part of long term remediation. As far as the water and streams, the Ohio EPA says environmental contractors are taking water quality samples daily, with results expected in the coming days. They’ve also put up earthen dams in a stream close to the derailment to capture contaminants. I want my water tested, you know, every week. And at least every week for the next few months until we get a nice, you know, recorded record of several tests that says it’s free and clear of any anything.

Linda wants long term water testing too. For her safety and Peace of Mind. I would like someone to reach out and reassure us that. Yeah, it’s safe. But do I wholeheartedly believe that? No. But ongoing testing down the road, not only today but in the future and our relationship moving forward where we can be confident, I’m news 5 investigator Tara Morgan. And back here at home, Louisville Water says our water is safe to drink right now, but they’re anticipating a plume of chemicals to reach us after leaking into the Ohio River during that chemical spill.

Louisville water experts say the chemical involved is used to produce plastics and resins. The biggest impact, they say, would actually be the smell of the water they’re monitoring. The system in the Ohio River has detected small bits of these chemicals, but the team says that they are sure they pose no risk to us. Just tell you that the levels in the river that we’re seeing are hundreds of times lower than any public health risk screening level for human toxicology. EPA certified lab scientists will continue to monitor the water, doing an average of 200 tests per

day to make sure it’s safe.