This article originally provided by The Herald-Dispatch

October 24, 2000

Towns take precautions with water

States of emergency issued by many; residents needn’t worry, official says

By CHRISTINA REDEKOPP and TIM R. MASSEY - The Herald-Dispatch

A drinking water crisis from a 250-million gallon coal sludge spill Oct. 11 into the Big Sandy River is over for some Tri-State residents, but some cities are still taking precautionary measures.

Along with Kentucky Gov. Paul Patton’s declaration of a state of emergency, Boyd County Judge Executive Bill Scott and Catlettsburg Mayor Roger Hensley issued States of Emergency last Wednesday for Boyd County and Catlettsburg, Ky. The declaration gives Hensley and Scott the right to do whatever is needed to ensure drinking water for residents and would provide funds reimbursement.

"If anything would happen I would have authority to purchase (whatever is necessary)," Hensley said. Catlettsburg will adopt a state of emergency at its council meeting tonight as a contingency, Hensley said.

However, Ashland City Manager William H. Fisher Jr. said these are just precautionary measures and neither Ashland nor Catlettsburg residents have to worry about their drinking water. He said Ashland never was included in an order given by Scott for residents to voluntarily conserve water.

Fisher said he is optimistic about the situation, but the city is prepared in case rain stirs up the sludge.

"Right now we’re in real good shape," said Steve Corbitt, Ashland public service director. "What we’re seeing is it’s dissipating. Levels are dropping at Kenova."

The city of Ashland Water Treatment Plant stopped providing water to Kenova, which began pumping water again Monday. Ashland still provides water to Flatwoods and Cannonsburg, Ky., water districts.

The main concern now is the Big Sandy Water District, said Eddie Lambert, director of the Ashland, Boyd County, Catlettsburg Office of Emergency Management. This includes the southwest tip of Boyd County south of Interstate 64 to the Lawrence County, Ky., and Carter County lines.

About 2,800 residents around the Marathon refinery south of Interstate 64 are under a water boiling advisory in conjunction with the Big Sandy Water District, said Matthew Adkins, deputy director of the Ashland Boyd County Catlettsburg Office of Emergency Management.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO) said ongoing tests do not show an appreciable increase in the turbidity of the Ohio River, spokesman Steve Wright said.

Water treatment plants generally can treat water at turbidity levels five times or more than the level being measured at Virginia Point, where the Big Sandy River flows into the Ohio. The Ohio River has approximately 30 times the flow of the Big Sandy River.

Turbidity is measured as Nephelometric Turbidity Units. The corps said turbidity was measuring in the 15 to 25 NTUs range at the Ashland plant. According to EPA standards, water treatment plants can treat up to 2,000 TBUs.

The rising stage of the level of the Ohio River is keeping the water in the Big Sandy from flowing into the Ohio River so far, said Jennifer Donahue, Ironton water superintendent.

Ironton is about 10 miles from the Big Sandy. It has at least two days worth of water stored in its reservoir, so Donahue does not foresee a problem comparable to Ashland, which is closer to the Big Sandy, she said.

"If it does hit Ohio we will sample and see if it can be treated," Donahue said. "I don’t think there will be a problem."

Meanwhile, Fort Gay continued to pump water hauled in tanker trucks from Huntington on Monday. A planned hookup to the Louisa, Ky., water plant was not expected to be completed until today.

Louisa’s drinking ban for customers was lifted Monday after tests were completed on water pumped from another intake upstream from its normal Levisa Fork source.

Bob Kelly, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on-site coordinator in Fort Gay, said the Big Sandy River’s condition had changed little visibly from its appearance on Oct. 11.

"It’s still running black," Kelly said. "Our main objective was getting people drinking water, and we’ve been able to do that."

Despite the huge influx of the coal slurry into the Tug Fork of the Big Sandy, there has been no apparent fish kill caused by the pollution.

"Maybe they swam ahead of the sludge," Kelly said. "No one has an explanation at this point."

Christina Redekopp’s e-mail address is redekopp@herald-dispatch.com. Tim R. Massey’s is tmassey@herald-dispatch.com.