Oil spill causes health concerns

07:31 PM CDT on Wednesday, July 23, 2008 Meg Farris / Eyewitness News Word of the fuel spill on the Mississippi River brought questions about how it's affecting the air locals breath and the water they drink. The collision happened below the water intake for the east bank of Jefferson and Orleans Parishes, so there is no concern there for drinking water. But water intakes for Algiers, Gretna, St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes are downriver from the wreckage, so those water purifying plants stopped taking in river water. About a day’s worth of reserve water that had already been purified is now in use. And water pressure has been reduced, so everyone in those areas is being asked to conserve water. Some fuel did get into the Algiers intake, but the New Orleans Sewerage and Water Board says there is no health concern. “We'd... [read full story]