Elk River leak

I was hoping that (stuff) that spilled in the Elk River last week would not cause problems on the Ohio. But the Wall Street Journal is tracking it, and people in Cincinnati are ready to shut down their intakes when the licorice-smelling (stuff) gets there.

I had to have an emergency windshield repair made yesterday, so I took my car to the place that replaced the windshield this past November. This place happens to be across the river from where the (stuff) leaked. When I got out of my car, the air was heavy with the smell of licorice, and I don't like licorice.

People where I work in downtown Charleston keep checking for updates on when they can flush their home plumbing and shower and cook again. But one guy I work with had an interesting take in the situation.

The only reason you can smell the stuff that leaked is because it has an odorant added to it, just as natural gas does. Considering how lackadaisical the company that stored the stuff was about reporting the leak, if it hadn't been for the odor, we might be drinking heavy concentrations of that stuff now and not even knowing it.

It reminds me of what happened at a couple of other big leaks that fouled water supplies, but that's a memory for another time.