<b>Allen Says School Water Safe</b>
At the April 1 School Board meeting, Dr. Susan Allen, head of the county public health department, told board members that "our water was probably never safer [to drink] than it is now, and it was certainly never better tested."
"There is nothing to suggest we have a lead-in-water hazard, in our homes or in our schools," she said.
Her announcement came two days after School Superintendent Robert Smith sent letters home to parents of all Arlington Public Schools students telling them the school system had taken action to cut down on lead levels detected in 12 school drinking fountains and sinks. "Public Health officials have said that they are satisfied with the process we have followed," Smith wrote, "and no further actions need to be taken at this time."
Following announcements of elevated lead levels in some county water samples in February, the school system undertook a program testing all fixtures in all schools, Smith told Board members last week. Those tests detected high lead levels at 12 fixtures in five schools: Ashlawn and Campbell elementary schools, the H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program, and the Reed and Wilson preschool programs.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sets an "action level" of 20 parts per billion for lead in drinking water in schools, 15 in residential water. Arlington schools used the lower level to decide what schools needed work to mitigate lead water levels.
Once lead levels were detected, the school system shut off water fountains in those schools and brought in bottled water for students. Since March 3, all of the fixtures that produced high water lead levels have been replaced. Six produced lower lead levels, and two others were shut off completely.
Those actions resolved the issue in Arlington schools, Allen said, but they don’t solve the real problems with lead. "It’s not the lead in the water, it’s the lead in the kid that matters," and in all cases of high blood lead levels in Arlington children, that has come from lead paint, she said.
<b>Police Investigate Shooting</b>
Detectives from the Arlington Police Department’s Homicide/Robbery Unit are investigating a shooting that occurred the afternoon of Friday, April 2, in the Long Branch Creek neighborhood. The victim, a 23-year-old man, was transported to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his lower abdomen. No additional details about his condition were available.
At 1:47 p.m., officers were dispatched to the 2900 block of South Glebe Road in response to a reported shooting. According to police reports, arriving officers determined that an altercation had occurred involving four or five men. At some point during the altercation, the victim was shot.
Detectives are looking for two suspects in connection with the incident. The first suspect is described as a black man in his late teens or early 20s, approximately 6-feet to 6-feet-1-inch tall, with a slim build, a slight mustache, and possibly with two chipped front teeth and a cornrow-style hairdo. The second suspect is described as a black male in his late teens or early 20s, approximately 5-feet-6 inches to 5-feet-7-inches tall, with a stocky build, a slight mustache and long, thin braids.
Police ask anyone with information about this incident to call Crime Solvers at 1-800-673-2777. Callers to Crime Solvers do not have to give their names, do not have to testify in court, and may receive a reward of up to $1,000.
<b>Dalecarlia Switches to Chlorine</b>
County residents may notice slight changes in water pressure, color and smell between April 2 and May 7, during the Dalecarlia water treatment plant’s annual temporary spring switch from chloramine to chlorine disinfectants. This conversion will coincide with the County’s annual water main flushing program.
The change is not related to recent issues concerning possible elevated lead levels in some drinking water in the region. The same disinfectant switch was done in the spring of 2002 and 2003. It is common industry practice for systems that use chloramine and is accompanied by the water main flushing program.
County residents may experience low water pressure, discolored water or a more distinct chlorine smell or taste during this period. The low pressure should be short in duration, and in most cases will abate as the flushing is finished in each area. Any discolored water should clear up within minutes by running cold water.