Several thousand residents of Letcher County in eastern Kentucky have been told it's now safe to drink their tap water.The Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection has lifted a water advisory that has been in effect since a diesel fuel leak contaminated a portion of the Kentucky River near theWhitesburg water treatment plant last week.State Division of Water spokesperson Allison Fleck says residents are no longer being warned not to drink their tap water or use it for bathing."The disposal site has been contained, it's undergoing remediation. We'll continue to have samples taken from the river, the water plant and the distribution system as long as that remediation is underway," Fleck said.A Whitesburg company, Don Childers Oil, Incorporated, has been cited for numerous violations in connection with the leak. The same company was also cited following a similar incident in November.
Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.
