Sludge Scares Some, Puts Others on Alert

Water samples near a massive spill of coal ash north of Chattanooga are showing high levels of arsenic causing state and federal officials to caution residents near Kingston, who use private wells or springs, to stop drinking the water: the question is, will counties closer to home feel the trickle down effect?

Rhea and Meigs Counties are some of the first downstream from the spill and share the site of the first T-V-A dam downriver. County leaders say they're receiving constant updates.

"We need to reassure people of Meigs County, Hamilton County, and other places on the Tennessee River... that the health risk is so minimal that people don't need to be greatly alarmed," says Meigs County Mayor Ken Jones.

Jones says he's in close contact several times a day with the EPA, TVA, and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation.

"They've got personnel and equipment on the grounds that are cleaning up the spill," Jones says.

Someone who saw the clean-up, and the sludge that led to it, is Calvin Turner, a West Knoxville resident who fishes in his free time.

"The water that goes around Kingston, I seen the guys out there today putting buoys out there," Turner says. "You could see the stuff right there close to shore, you could actually see it from the road."

Turner just fished the water in Kingston a few days before the spill. After what he has seen and heard, Turner says he won't be filling his bucket at his favorite fishing hole in Kingston anytime soon.

"You've got so much ash that went in there, I don't feel comfortable fishing down there."

Turner and his family have come downriver to Meigs County to fish at Watts Bar instead. Look at a map of the area and you'll see Meigs sits approximately 30 miles away from the site of the spill. The first dam downstream from the site: Watts Bar.

With potentially hazardous substances so close by, we wanted to know if our area could be part of the ripple effect.

According to Jones, the main concern is in two places: the air we breathe, and the water we drink. But he says, Meigs gets most of its water from Decatur Water System, which has no tie to the Tennessee River. And from what he's heard, TVA has the spill well-contained.

"We have got regular updates from TVA and what their process is and how they are dealing with the situation," Jones says. "If this situation changes, TVA is going to keep us informed, EPA is going to keep us informed and we'll notify the public just as soon as we can."

But until he's sure the water is clean, Turner is fishing at Watts Bar instead.