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Officials monitoring Ohio River water after warehouse fire upriver

Officials monitoring Ohio River water after warehouse fire upriver
Posted at 4:48 PM, Nov 01, 2017
and last updated 2017-11-01 16:48:42-04

CINCINNATI -- Officials are keeping an eye on Ohio River water after a fire burned for eight days at a warehouse upriver.

Greater Cincinnati Water Works, the Ohio EPA and Ohio River Valley Sanitation Commission have been obtaining and analyzing river water for any contaminants, but have not detected any industrial chemicals related to the fire, City Manager Harry Black wrote in a memo to the mayor and council. 

The cause of the concern is a fire that broke out at a 420,000-foot warehouse in Parkersburg, West Virginia Oct. 21. Officials aren't sure exactly what was in there. The company that owns the warehouse, Intercontinental Export Import Inc., said on its website that it buys and sells recycled plastics, the Associated Press reported. 

The warehouse burned for more than a week.Firefighters from more than 40 fire stations in Ohio and West Virginia responded. 

Officials will continue to monitor the river and take any needed precautions to protect local water, Black wrote. Also, GCWW will shut down Ohio River intakes early next week to allow any possible contaminants to pass.