W.Va. official: Spill company knew about 2nd chemical

Asssociated Press

CHARLESTON, W.VA.

The company at the center of the West Virginia water crisis immediately knew a second chemical leaked from its plant into the Elk River, and told its workers in an email, according to a state environmental official.

However, Freedom Industries did not let state government officials know about the second chemical until days after the spill. And state environmental department official Mike Dorsey said most company employees did not skim far enough into the email to see that information.

It’s unclear who sent the email or how many of the company’s 51 employees it reached.

“The explanation I was given was that they had the information on the very first day,” said Dorsey, chief of the state environmental agency’s homeland security and emergency response division. “It was in an email that was being shared among company employees, but no one read far enough down the page to see that.”

Freedom Industries President Gary Southern showed Dorsey the email Wednesday.