EnvironmentWest Virginiaelk riverwater safety

Chemical Spill In West Va. Worse Than Initially Reported

Chemical Spill In West Va. Worse Than Initially Reported
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Senior national editor, HuffPost

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CHARLESTON, WV JANUARY 11, 2014:Workers walk behind the fence at the Freedom Industries building in CharlestonCharleston, West Virginia on Saturday, January 11, 2014. Around 5000 gallons of a chemical, used in the coal cleaning process, leaked into the Elk River from the West Virginia American Company and has stopped the usage of tap water for 300,000 West Virginia residents in nine different counties.Ty Wright for the Washington Post

The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection issued an update on Monday evening indicating that the Elk River spill in West Virginia earlier this month involved more gallons of chemicals than previously reported.

Freedom Industries, which owned the tank that leaked into a river supplying water in the state, now says that approximately 10,000 gallons of the chemicals 4-methylcyclohexane methanol (also known as MCHM) and PPH were released. The company initially said 7,500 gallons spilled, and failed to disclose the presence of the second chemical until last week. The leak, first reported on Jan. 9, left hundreds of thousands in the capital region without access to tap water for days. Though the formal advisory on the water has been lifted, some in the region say they are still concerned about the safety of their water.

The DEP's press release provides Freedom Industries' newest estimate, but notes, "It is not known how much material spilled into the Elk River and shut down the drinking water supply for citizens across nine West Virginia counties."

""We are not making any judgment about its (estimate) accuracy," DEP Secretary Randy Huffman said in a statement, referring to the company's latest spill figure. "We felt it was important to provide to the public what the company has provided the WVDEP in writing. We are still reviewing the calculation, and this is something that will be researched further during the course of this investigation."

“This is the first calculation that has been provided concerning the amount of materials that spilled on Jan. 9,” Huffman said. "This new calculation does not change any of our protocols in dealing with this spill, nor does it affect the ongoing remediation efforts. Our actions have never been dependent on what Freedom has reported to us. From the start, we have acted aggressively to contain the spill and remediate the site."

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin (D) has called for the storage facility to be torn down, and for a full remediation of the site.

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Before You Go

West Virginia Chemical Spill
Jonathan Steele(01 of23)
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Jonathan Steele, owner of Bluegrass Kitchen, displays hand washing stations that he used in the back of his restaurant in Charleston, W.Va., Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2014. Steele was able to open his restaurant using bottled water on Sunday. He is still using bottled water to cook with. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (credit:AP)
(02 of23)
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Al Jones of the West Virginia department of General Services tests the water as he flushes the faucet and opens a rest room on the first floor of the State Capitol in Charleston, W.Va., Monday, Jan. 13, 2014. Gov. Earl Tomblin announced that the water system is ready to be flushed by zones with safe drinking water after the chemical spill on Jan. 9. It could still be several days before everyone is cleared to use the water again, but officials were grateful to give the green light to about 6,000 to 10,000 customers. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (credit:AP)
(03 of23)
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Heather Smith's husband taps into a water spring behind their house in Elkview, W.Va. She told The Huffington Post in an email:
We only live about a mile off the interstate but we're still in the country. We don't have a well but have a creek that runs right beside our home and my husband tapped into a spring behind our house. It's constantly flowing and he ran a 50 foot hose down hill into a large bucket and we've been boiling this water on the stove to bathe and wash out hands with. I've also put a touch of bleach in it and used it to wash dishes and clothes by hand. It's not easy and my husband makes many trips to fill each pot and I boil it and empty it only for him to make another trip to collect more water. It's work but I'm just thankful that we found it. Most people don't have a fresh spring running behind their home.
 (credit:Heather Smith)
(04 of23)
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Elkview, W.Va. resident Heather Smith boils water at her home. She told The Huffington Post in an email:
We only live about a mile off the interstate but we're still in the country. We don't have a well but have a creek that runs right beside our home and my husband tapped into a spring behind our house. It's constantly flowing and he ran a 50 foot hose down hill into a large bucket and we've been boiling this water on the stove to bathe and wash out hands with. I've also put a touch of bleach in it and used it to wash dishes and clothes by hand. It's not easy and my husband makes many trips to fill each pot and I boil it and empty it only for him to make another trip to collect more water. It's work but I'm just thankful that we found it. Most people don't have a fresh spring running behind their home.
 (credit:Heather Smith)
(05 of23)
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A worker moves a drilling machine around storage tanks at Freedom Industries storage facility in Charleston, W.Va., Monday, Jan. 13, 2014. The ban on tap water for parts of West Virginia was lifted on Monday, ending a crisis for a fraction of the 300,000 people who were told not to drink, wash or cook with water after a chemical spill tainted the water supply. Gov. Earl Tomblin made the announcement at a news conference, five days after people were told to use the water only to flush their toilets. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (credit:AP)
Earl Ray Tomblin, James Hoyer(06 of23)
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Commander of the West Virginia National Guard, Gen. James Hoyer, left, gestures as West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin, right, looks on during a press conference at the capitol in Charleston, W.Va., Monday, Jan. 13, 2014 on the chemical spill that affected about 300,000 people. The Governor announced that the water system is ready to be flushed by zones with safe drinking water. (AP Photo/Steve Helber) (credit:AP)
(07 of23)
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Members of the West Virginia Army National Guard, along with a member of the Belle Police Department and a volunteer, offload emergency water from a military truck to a forklift as citizens line up for water at the Belle Fire Department, Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014, in Belle, W.Va. About 300,000 people Saturday entered their third day of not being able to take showers and wash clothes. Officials remain unclear when it might be safe again. Federal authorities began investigating how the foaming agent escaped the Freedom Industries plant and seeped into the Elk River. Just how much of the chemical leaked into the river was not yet known. (AP Photo/The Daily Mail, Marcus Constantino) (credit:AP)
(08 of23)
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The GeStamp Stamping Plant-South Charleston (W.Va.) is one of several distribution locations open Sunday morning, Jan. 12, 2014 so local residents can pick up bottled water and fill containers after a chemical spill Thursday in the Elk River that has contaminated the public water supply in nine counties. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water..This location will remain open 24-hours a day until the ban on using tap water for drinking and washing is lifted. (AP Photo Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
Elk River Chemical Spill(09 of23)
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This Friday, Jan. 10, 2014 photo shows a stretch of the Elk River in Charleston, W.Va. The White House has issued a federal disaster declaration in West Virginia, where a chemical spill that may have contaminated tap water has led officials to tell at least 300,000 people not to bathe, brush their teeth or wash their clothes. The West Virginia National Guard planned to distribute bottled drinking water to emergency services agencies in the nine affected counties. About 100,000 water customers, or 300,000 people total, were affected, state officials said. (AP Photo/Tyler Evert) (credit:AP)
(10 of23)
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Local businesses remain closed and unable to serve food and water InCharleston, W.V., Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014 after a chemical spill Thursday in the Elk River that has contaminated the public water supply in nine counties. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water. (AP Photo/Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
(11 of23)
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Local residents in Charleston, W.V. continue to arrive at distribution centers to load up on bottled water Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014 after a chemical spill Thursday in the Elk River that has contaminated the public water supply in nine counties. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water. (AP Photo/Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
(12 of23)
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Employees of the South Charleston Public Works Department assisted the residents in obtaining cases of water and filling the containers they brought with them Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014 after a chemical spill Thursday in the Elk River that has contaminated the public water supply in nine counties. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water.The West Virginia National Guard was sent to help distribute bottled water. (AP Photo Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
(13 of23)
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Taylor Books manager Dan Carlisle, in his store in Charleston, WV., can still sell books, but cannot serve food or drink until the water ban is lifted. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water. Local businesses and restaurants were forced to stop serving food and water by the Kanawha County (W.Va.) Health Department following the chemical spill on Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014. (AP Photo Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
(14 of23)
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Local residents in Charleston, W.V. continue to arrive at distribution centers to load up on bottled water Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014. The West Virginia National Guard was sent to distribute bottled water, and residents bought up stock at local supermarkets following the chemical spill on Thursday. Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water. (AP Photo/Michael Switzer) (credit:AP)
(15 of23)
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A worker at the West Virginia American Water Co. intake facility on the Elk River breaks ice to take water samples, Friday, Jan. 10, 2014, in Charleston, W.Va. A chemical leaked from a 48,000-gallon tank at Freedom Industries, a chemical storage facility about a mile upriver, on Thursday in Charleston. The White House has issued a federal disaster declaration in West Virginia, where the spill may have contaminated tap water. Officials told at least 300,000 people not to bathe, brush their teeth or wash their clothes. (AP Photo/Tyler Evert) (credit:AP)
(16 of23)
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City officials help direct traffic through a water distribution site set up at the South Charleston Recreation Center in South Charleston, W.Va., Friday, Jan. 10, 2014, after at least 100,000 customers in nine West Virginia counties were told not to drink, bathe, cook or wash clothes using their tap water because of a chemical spill into the Elk River in Charleston, with Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin declaring a state of emergency Thursday for all those areas. The site opened before 9 a.m. with bottled water and a tanker truck, but was expected to run out of water about 90 minutes later. (AP Photo/The Daily Mail, Marcus Constantino) (credit:AP)
(17 of23)
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A Freedom Industries worker places a boom in the Elk River Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014, at the site of a chemical leak in Charleston that has fouled the drinking water in five West Virginia counties. (AP Photo/The Charleston Gazette, Chris Dorst) (credit:AP)
Elk River Chemical Spill(18 of23)
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Workers pump 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, a foaming agent used in the coal preparation process, out of a 48,000-gallon tank at Freedom Industries, a chemical storage facility, in Charleston, W.Va., on Friday, Jan. 10, 2014. The White House has issued a federal disaster declaration in West Virginia, where a chemical spill that may have contaminated tap water has led officials to tell at least 300,000 people not to bathe, brush their teeth or wash their clothes. The West Virginia National Guard planned to distribute bottled drinking water to emergency services agencies in the nine affected counties. About 100,000 water customers, or 300,000 people total, were affected, state officials said. (AP Photo/Tyler Evert) (credit:AP)
(19 of23)
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CHARLESTON, WV - JANUARY 10: The banks of the Elk River, where Kanawha County emergency services eventually determined the chemical had seeped through a secondary containment barrier, is seen on January 10, 2014 in Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia American Water determined Thursday MCHM chemical had 'overwhelmed' the plant's capacity to keep it out of the water from a spill at Freedom Industries in Charleston. An unknown amount of the hazardous chemical contaminated the public water system for potentially 300,000 people in West Virginia. (Photo by Tom Hindman/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Elk River Chemical Spill(20 of23)
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The West Virginia American Water Co. intake facility on the Elk River is closed following a 4-methylcyclohexane methanol leak from a 48,000-gallon tank at Freedom Industries, a chemical storage facility about a mile upriver in Charleston, W.Va., on Friday, Jan. 10, 2014. The White House has issued a federal disaster declaration in West Virginia, where a chemical spill that may have contaminated tap water has led officials to tell at least 300,000 people not to bathe, brush their teeth or wash their clothes. The West Virginia National Guard planned to distribute bottled drinking water to emergency services agencies in the nine affected counties. About 100,000 water customers, or 300,000 people total, were affected, state officials said. (AP Photo/Tyler Evert) (credit:AP)
(21 of23)
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CHARLESTON, WV - JANUARY 10: An unidentified worker at Freedom Industries shovels NAPA premium oil absorbent on January 10, 2014 in Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia American Water determined Thursday MCHM chemical had 'overwhelmed' the plant's capacity to keep it out of the water from a spill at Freedom Industries in Charleston. An unknown amount of the hazardous chemical contaminated the public water system for potentially 300,000 people in West Virginia. (Photo by Tom Hindman/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
(22 of23)
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CHARLESTON, WV - JANUARY 10: A cat is provided clean water after Kanawha/Charleston Humane Associations scrambled to find water for their animals on January 10, 2014 in Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia American Water determined Thursday MCHM chemical had 'overwhelmed' the plant's capacity to keep it out of the water from a spill at Freedom Industries in Charleston. An unknown amount of the hazardous chemical contaminated the public water system for potentially 300,000 people in West Virginia. (Photo by Tom Hindman/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
Jimmy Gianato, Earl Ray Tomblin, James Hoyer, Jeff Mcintyre(23 of23)
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Jimmy Gianato, the director of the West Virginia Department of Homeland Security, at podium, addresses reporters during a press conference about the regional water contamination late Thursday, Jan. 9, 2014. in Charleston, W.Va. With him are West Virginia American Water President Jeff McIntyre,left, West Virginia National Guard Adj. Gen. James Hoyer and Governor Earl Ray Tomblin, right. (AP Photo,Tom Hindman) (credit:AP)
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