Owensboro Municipal Utilities officials said there is no concern about the safety of their drinking water after a barge incident that occurred on the Ohio River in Louisville this morning. One barge carrying approximately 1,400 tons of methanol has become lodged at the McAlpine Dam and is partially submerged, officials said.
Owensboro Municipal Utilities officials issued this statement Tuesday afternoon:
OMU takes its water from an underground aquifer, not from the Ohio River. This aquifer is protected against river contamination situations such as the spill near Louisville earlier today; therefore, there are no concerns about the safety of our drinking water.
We work diligently to provide safe water to our customer-owners and continue to test and monitor our water supply daily.
The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet first released a statement about the incident, saying their Emergency Response Team (ERT) was on the scene. They said the incident involves 11 barges, 10 of which were loose from the tug. The team has dispatched a boat team to assist with downstream assessment and water quality monitoring. The nearest municipal water intake downstream is in Henderson.
The U.S. Coast Guard Sector Ohio Valley, Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources and Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission (ORSANCO), as well as local emergency officials, are assisting with the response.
