Polluted water affects 55,000 people in central China

WUHAN: About 55,000 people in central China's Hubei Province were relying on emergency water supplies after a local river was contaminated, local authorities said Monday.

Local technicians found water from the Tanghe River, the major water source for Shuanggou Township in Xiangfan City, became discolored on February 19, said a spokesman with the provincial environmental protection department.

The township's water supply company immediately halted taking water from the river and started using water from two wells, the spokesman said.

An expert panel was investigating the cause of the pollution, he said.

The 233-km Tanghe River, a branch of the Hanjiang River, runs through Hubei and neighboring Henan Province.

Source:Xinhua