West Virginia chemical spill prompts state of emergency

[Gonad the Barbarian]

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/201...ts-state-of-emergency-water-ban-in-5-counties

West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin declared a state of emergency Thursday in five counties because of a chemical spill into the Elk River.

The state of emergency includes West Virginia American Water customers in Boone, Lincoln, Kanawha, Jackson and Putnam counties, according to NBC station WSAZ.

Residents were told not to drink the water, bathe in it or cook with the water and only use it for flushing and fire emergencies. Boiling it will not remove the chemicals.

The declaration is believed to impact 100,000 customers, WSAZ reported.

The station said the chemical leaked from a tank at Freedom Industries in Charleston. The leaked product is 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, which is used in the froth flotation process of coal washing and preparation, according to WSAZ.

Freedom Industries did not immediately respond for comment.

That's a lot of people without water.

Edit: Why is this the only article I'm finding on this? Shouldn't this be being plastered all over the internet? Is it because West Virginians don't have internet access?

 

[Lithium381]

OOO an emergency! Government to the rescue!!!! Just be prepared to suspend some of your rights in order to get help. oh, and once the water is working, you still don't get your rights back.

 

[Triumph]

OOO an emergency! Government to the rescue!!!! Just be prepared to suspend some of your rights in order to get help. oh, and once the water is working, you still don't get your rights back.

What the hell are you going on about? Of all of the things to use to complain about government, a private company spilling methylcyclohexane methanol into the goddamn water supply, and the government warning them about it, is not one of them.

 

[Gonad the Barbarian]

A private company named Freedom Industries.

 

[senseamp]

It's just environmentalists scaring people. A little 4-methylcyclohexane methanol never hurt anyone.

 

[thumper01]

It's just environmentalists scaring people. A little 4-methylcyclohexane methanol never hurt anyone.

The company said it wasn't hazardous.

Can be absorbed through the skin and may cause heart, lung, liver, and kidney damage, but not really hazardous.

Water sold out at local grocery and convenience stores within 30 minutes of water usage notice. Fights are already starting to break out at stores over whatever remains.

 

[spidey07]

Hmmm, seems this process is part of the "clean coal" Obama has forced upon our coal industries.

Therefore Obama is solely to blame for this tragedy, may great fuck be upon him.

 

[senseamp]

The company said it wasn't hazardous.

Can be absorbed through the skin and may cause heart, lung, liver, and kidney damage, but not really hazardous.

Water sold out at local grocery and convenience stores within 30 minutes of water usage notice. Fights are already starting to break out at stores over whatever remains.

Oh please, and you believe this environmentalist BS? Water sold out just means it's food stamp deposit day today:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...tries-to-stop-food-stamp-water-dumping-fraud/

The scam is called "water dumping." It works as follows: Food stamp recipients use their benefits to purchase water bottles and from there promptly dump the water out and redeem the bottles for cash.

 

[senseamp]

Hmmm, seems this process is part of the "clean coal" Obama has forced upon our coal industries.

Therefore Obama is solely to blame for this tragedy, may great fuck be upon him.

This man tells the truth, the environazis will tell you that you can have BOTH no sulfur in your air AND no 4-methylcyclohexane methanol in your water, but everyone knows you must have at least one. That's where the phrase "pick your poison" comes from. If you didn't have to pick at least one, why would this phrase be around?

 

[spidey07]

This man tells the truth, the environazis will tell you that you can have BOTH no sulfur in your air AND no 4-methylcyclohexane methanol in your water, but everyone knows you must have at least one. That's where the phrase "pick your poison" comes from. If you didn't have to pick at least one, why would this phrase be around?

I took organic chemistry as an elective in college for fun.

That just looks like a powerful solvent. Just burn your water and you'll be fine.

 

[senseamp]

I took organic chemistry as an elective in college for fun.

That just looks like a powerful solvent. Just burn your water and you'll be fine.

Wiser words have never been spoken :thumbsup:

 

[thumper01]

Oh please, and you believe this environmentalist BS? Water sold out just means it's food stamp deposit day today:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/201...tries-to-stop-food-stamp-water-dumping-fraud/

Don't know if all of the studies were of environmentalist bent or not, but I don't think any chemical solvent is good for you at high enough levels or over a prolonged period of time.

I think "water dumpers" would be in for a rude shock. There is no bottle deposit in WV.

 

[werepossum]

Don't know if all of the studies were of environmentalist bent or not, but I don't think any chemical solvent is good for you at high enough levels or over a prolonged period of time.

I think "water dumpers" would be in for a rude shock. There is no bottle deposit in WV.

See, you just don't understand how devious are these welfare people. They use food stamps to buy bottled water in West Virginia, then they dump it out (with callous disregard about how they are diluting our precious 4-methylcyclohexane methanol which is our only protection against rogue sulfury coal invading our waterways), then they drive to Oregon and cash in the bottles for the maximum deposit. Big profit!

The people will likely be fine, but fish and amphibians don't have the option of buying bottled water. ('Cause those welfare people totally bogarted it, I mean.) Could be a relatively major environmental disaster.

 

[Jaskalas]

With a State of Emergency it is irresponsible for the media not to widely cover and distribute this story. If one person is harmed by drinking this because the word wasn't gotten out....

 

[dmcowen674]

They says 300,000 people affected by this now.

Fights are erupting for bottled water.

 

[werepossum]

With a State of Emergency it is irresponsible for the media not to widely cover and distribute this story. If one person is harmed by drinking this because the word wasn't gotten out....

Agreed. 100,000 people should have put it on the national scene. Along with warnings on who (if anyone) is at special risk and instructions on what to do.

 

[CLite]

Hmmm, seems this process is part of the "clean coal" Obama has forced upon our coal industries.

Therefore Obama is solely to blame for this tragedy, may great fuck be upon him.

Do you purposely set out to make yourself look like an unhinged lunatic?

 

[nehalem256]

I took organic chemistry as an elective in college for fun.

That just looks like a powerful solvent. Just burn your water and you'll be fine.

Personally I wouldn't drink water that burns. But maybe that is just me?

 

[Bowfinger]

[ ... ]
Edit: Why is this the only article I'm finding on this? Shouldn't this be being plastered all over the internet? Is it because West Virginians don't have internet access?

It's on the national news this morning as a "breaking story." You'll probably start seeing more articles as reporters get into their offices this morning.

 

[Gonad the Barbarian]

With a State of Emergency it is irresponsible for the media not to widely cover and distribute this story. If one person is harmed by drinking this because the word wasn't gotten out....

The corporate media at work. If this gets much media coverage it could hurt stock prices or profit margins. I would have thought the immediate safety of now 300,000 people might have priority over that, but at least now we all know for sure it doesn't.

 

[BUnit1701]

With a State of Emergency it is irresponsible for the media not to widely cover and distribute this story. If one person is harmed by drinking this because the word wasn't gotten out....

Yes, because it is of vital importance that people in LA and Chicago know not to drink the water in West Virginia...

I'm sure the local news sources and EBS are running wall to wall about it.

 

[Ogrinz]

Not a expert on water filtration, but what about reverse osmosis systems and distilling the water.

 

[feralkid]

Hmmm, seems this process is part of the "clean coal" Obama has forced upon our coal industries.

Therefore Obama is solely to blame for this tragedy, may great fuck be upon him.

 

[Jeff7]

Damn EPA. If it weren't for them, this fine business could have been freely dumping this stuff all along, without a second thought.




(Or is that only China that does that sort of thing? :hmm

 

[senseamp]

Yeah, Americans are just softies. They need more free market pollution controls:

http://www.chinahush.com/2009/10/21/amazing-pictures-pollution-in-china/