Paul Dalzell was repairing a house in the small town of Poca, West Virginia when he received his friend’s text message: “Don’t drink the water, shower, animals or anything . . On the news . . warning for governor’s office for Kanawha, Boone, Putnam, Lincoln, Jackson . . spread the word.”

It was January 9, 2014, the day chemical tanks owned by Freedom Industries leaked ten thousand gallons of a coal-processing chemical known as MCHM into the Elk River, contaminating the water supply for over three hundred thousand people.

Driving home to Charleston, Dalzell watched as cars swarmed the parking lots of Krogers and Save-A-Lot and panicked residents packed their trunks with bottled water. Once home, he checked Facebook and saw photos posted by a friend who had taken a shower before hearing the water advisory. Spread across her legs were ugly, blistering rashes.