Submitted by Armen Hareyan on May 27th, 2008
Las Lomas water is found to have high levels of mercury leading to a serious warning for public.
California Water Service Company reports high levels of mercury in water making it useless for drinking. Every attempts of purifying the water, such as boiling it, are useless, because the pollution level is high.
Mercury is much more dangerous when drinking than when breathing. However, boiling the water leads to mercury release into the air, so the pollution and health risk still exists.
California Water Service Company is now notifying residents about health concerns. Sheriff's Office itself is investigating the case to find out the reasons of why mercury level is so high.
Officials suppose that the incident took place on Saturday when a tank was 'vandalized'. This tank was found to be somehow opened leading to water pollution. The tank served about 3000 residents who are already notified about the incident.
High mercury levels lead to poisoning, which is especially dangerous for pregnant women and children. It causes symptoms like sensory impairment and coordination weakness. Children often show symptoms of hair, nail or teeth loss, kidney disfunction, memory impairment, imsomnia.
Source:
eMaxHealth 