HARRIMAN, Tenn. (AP) - Crews are expected to work through the holiday weekend, to contain the sludge from a broken dike at a power plant in Tennessee. It coated a neighborhood near the plant.
Environmentalists worry that the sludge, filled with ash from the coal-fired power plant, could pose a health risk. But initial tests by a public utility company found no threat to drinking water.
The Kingston plant about 50 miles west of Knoxville is run by the Tennessee Valley Authority, the nation's largest public utility. A TVA news release says there's no threat to the environment from the breach at the plant.
Hundreds of fish were floating dead downstream from the plant on Tuesday, but TVA says they may have died from the cold temperatures. State and federal agencies haven't yet finished their water quality testing.
Environmentalists say the spill it was completely avoidable.
They say similar spills have happened elsewhere. They blame the industry and a lack of federal regulation.
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