Water supply suspended after chemical spill in China river

Beijing: Water utility companies were Sunday compelled to suspend water supply from a river in China due to a chemical spill in its upper reaches, media reported.

The spill happened in the Fuchun River at around 3 a.m. when a tanker carrying tetrachloroethane overturned on a road in Tonglu County and some of the chemical flowed into the river, Xinhua reported. The Fuchun river is the Fuyang city`s only water source. The Fuyang city government said it received the accident report at 7 a.m., and asked water utility companies in the city to stop drawing water from the river, also banning fishing on the section affected. Citizens were without tap water from noon, when the tap water supply was suspended. The supply of water was, however, resumed after a three-hour suspension. Both Fuyang and Tonglu are under the jurisdiction of the provincial capital of Hangzhou. Hu Wei, director of the environmental protection bureau of Hangzhou, said the contamination was now within control and it was unlikely to pose any danger to the drinking water of Hangzhou.