WebMD News from HealthDay
July 22, 2016 — Residents of the Colorado town of Hugo have been told not to drink or shower in tap water because the community’s wells may be contaminated with the chemical in marijuana that makes people high.
THC was detected in some tests conducted with field kits, and more definitive laboratory tests are underway, according to sheriff’s Capt. Michael Yowell, the Associated Press reported.
No illnesses have been linked to the town’s water, Lincoln County Public Health Director Susan Kelly said.
There are indications that one of the town’s five wells was tampered with, but it’s not known if the water was deliberately tainted, according to Yowell. The FBI and the Colorado Bureau of Investigation are assisting in the case, he added.
Hugo has a population of about 730 and is located about 100 miles southeast of Denver, the AP reported.
Drinking THC-contaminated water is unlikely to cause lasting health effects, according to Mark Salley, a spokesman for the state Department of Public Health and Environment.
The effects would depend on the concentration of THC in the water and how much and how quickly water was consumed, he told the AP.
