2/4/2009 6:05:00 AM
Water contaminated with hydrochloric acid
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BELLAIRE, Ohio (AP) - Water service for thousands of residents was back to normal Tuesday, a day after the system was flushed to remove hydrochloric acid accidentally added to the village's supply.
No injuries were reported.
Forty pounds of the acid were added to Bellaire's water Sunday after a supplier shipped the wrong chemical and the filtration system crew mistook the containers for fluoride.
The mistake was discovered Monday morning when workers noticed fluoride levels were lower than normal.
"Unfortunately, the drums are all the same size and the same color," water department superintendent Kirk Baker said.
Baker said crews opened fire hydrants and drained the system to clean it.
"All I can say is it was an unfortunate accident and it won't happen again," he said.
State regulators were in Bellaire on Tuesday reviewing safety procedures at the water department.
The chemical drums were labeledsaid Janet Barth, regional environmental manager with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency's Division of Drinking and Ground Waters.
"Common sense is, you need to look at the drum before you hook it up," she said.
Joe Redinger, president of the supplier, Ohio Valley Chemical in Martins Ferry, said Tuesday the shipping mix up occurred at the dock but he was unsure how. No one should be fired over such an error, he said.
A small amount of hydrochloric acid heavily diluted in water poses very little or no health risk but in a low concentration the risks include nausea, dry mouth and diarrhea.
Customers were urged to avoid using tap water, and Bellaire High School dismissed classes early. The Ohio EPA lifted a warning about 1 p.m. Monday.
Fifteen people called Belmont Community Hospital asking about symptoms related to the water problem. Two people went to the hospital - one with a headache and another with mouth dryness and diarrhea - but neither was believed related to the accident, said spokesman Gregg Warren.
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