West Virginians No Longer Face Water Warning

But that doesn't mean people are ready to drink
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 18, 2014 4:40 PM CST
West Virginians No Longer Face Water Warning
In this Jan. 13, 2014, photo, Al Jones of the West Virginia department of General Services tests the water at the State Capitol in Charleston, W.Va.   (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

West Virginia's water warning is officially over, CNN reports—but only officially. Plenty of people are still uncomfortable with the idea of drinking the previously tainted Elk River water supply, which still smells oddly, the AP reports. "If I turn (the tap) on, it drives me out of the apartment. It still smells," says an activist. Notes a scientist: "I would certainly be waiting until I couldn't smell it anymore ... to be drinking it."

"I don't blame people at all for raising questions and wondering whether they can trust what's being told to them," he adds. Treatment plant operator West Virginia American Water has ended its don't-drink advisory for all its customers, CNN notes, but the CDC still advises pregnant women not to take a gulp: "Due to limited availability of data, and out of an abundance of caution, you may wish to consider an alternative drinking water source for pregnant women until the chemical is at non-detectable levels in the water distribution system." (More West Virginia stories.)

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