CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Downtown businesses and restaurants reopened Tuesday following last week’s chemical spill, but many people waited yet another day for officials to tell them their tap water was safe.
So far, about 38 percent of West Virginia American Water’s customers have been allowed to use their water again after a chemical spilled into the Elk River on Thursday. The emergency closed schools, restaurants, and businesses because they, along with about 300,000 residents, were told not to drink, shower, or even wash clothes with the contaminated water.
Matthew Davis said his neighborhood was still waiting for the ban to be lifted. After rinsing off at a nearby creek last week, he finally enjoyed a hot shower Tuesday at his fiancee’s house 30 minutes away.
Davis, 21, had his wisdom teeth removed just before the water ban.
‘‘Pretty much all I had was Coke, and that hurt,’’ Davis said.
Officials cautioned that even water that was deemed safe may still have a slight licorice-type odor, raising the anxieties of some.
Beverly Farrow also took a shower for the first time Tuesday morning after nearly five days without water.
She got the call Monday night from the water company saying it was OK to flush the water systems.