W.Va. company to dismantle tanks after chemical spill

West Virginia’s governor is ordering the company responsible for the chemical spill that contaminated water for 300,000 people to remove all above-ground storage tanks from its Charleston operation.

Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin’s statement on Saturday says that Freedom Industries must start dismantling the tanks by March 15, the Associated Press reports.

{mosads}Freedom Industries must also dismantle all associated piping and machinery at the facility. All 17 tanks at the site are “located within inadequate secondary containment areas,” the order said.

“During the dismantling of the tanks, Freedom Industries is ordered to install measures that ensure that secondary containment is adequate to contain any potential spills resulting from the work,” the governor’s statement said.

“Secondary containment structures cannot be removed until all above-ground tanks have been dismantled and removed from the site.”

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) had called for the facility to be torn down on Friday.