Water Safe To Drink In North Penn Area After Spill, Officials Say

LANSDALE, PA — The North Penn Water Authority reassured residents on Wednesday that the water is safe to drink, and that their supply was not impacted by the weekend catastrophe along the Delaware River.

The massive spill of latex into the Delaware River near Bristol had caused concern in some local residents, but officials reminded the public that the weekend spill occurred far downstream.

"It is not possible for the spilled material to travel in the opposite direction of the river’s flow to reach the Authority’s facility, located upstream and such a long distance away," the North Penn Water Authority said in a statement.

The Authority's river intake on the Delaware, at Point Pleasant Pumping Station, is 38 miles north of the spill.

"Our water is continuously monitored and tested around the clock every day," added Anthony Bellitto, executive director of NPWA. "Our customers can be assured that their water is completely safe."

The spill prompted Philadelphia officials to send alerts Sunday recommending that residents only use bottled water for drinking and cooking. City officials said later that afternoon that they hadn't found any contamination in Philadelphia's water supply, so that water is safe to drink through Monday.

The "latex emulsion product" was released from an Altuglas manufacturing facility Friday, shortly before midnight, into Otter Creek in Bristol, Pennsylvania, because of an apparent equipment failure, according to its parent company, Trinseo PLC.

Trinseo estimated 8,100 gallons of the solution — about 50 percent water and the remainder latex polymer — was spilled.

The latex emulsion is a white liquid used in various consumer goods, the company said. Altuglas and regulatory agencies were testing water samples in the surrounding area to confirm the material was not a threat to people or wildlife.

The incident is being investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

With reporting from Patch correspondent Josh Bakan