VIENNA - Health officials have lifted a "do not drink" water advisory that had been in place for part of Wood County for nearly three months.
The News and Sentinel reports that Wood County Health Department Director Drema Mace announced the lifting of the advisory on Tuesday at the Vienna Utility Board office.
About 5,500 water customers in Vienna and Boaz had been advised to drink from water bottles since May 19, when Vienna Mayor Randy Rapp announced the city's water wasn't meeting federal guidelines.
The advisory followed new EPA guidelines that say drinking water with 70 parts of C8 per trillion or less is "not expected to result in adverse health effects over a lifetime of exposure."
The chemical, which has contaminated the water in Wood County communities for years, has been linked to cancer, thyroid disease and dangerously high blood pressure in pregnant women.
Mayor Randy Rapp told the Gazette-Mail in May that it might be six weeks to two months before Vienna had in place carbon filters that will eliminate C8 in the water. In the meantime, Rapp estimated, it would take about 70,000 gallons of water a day to service the city's 11,000 residents and the town of Boaz's 3,000 residents, who also use the city's water.
Some residents, including Rapp, told the Gazette-Mail they would continue to drink the water, despite the advisory.
"I've lived here my whole life," he said. "It's one of those things where it didn't happen overnight."
Rapp told the News and Sentinel a new filter plant went into use Saturday and had pumped 3.5 million gallons of water through the plant by Tuesday morning.
Rapp thanked Parkersburg officials for helping supply Vienna residents with water. He says his city consumed more than a million bottles of water over 83 days.