Heartache, anger in Central Washington over drinking-water wells tainted by ‘forever chemicals’

Heartache, anger in Central Washington over drinking-water wells tainted by ‘forever chemicals’ | The Seattle Times

Brandi Hyatt, featured in this article, is another recipient along with Whidbey Island Water Systems Association of a Public Participation Grant for PFAS in drinking water.

SELAH, Yakima County — In 2016, Brandi and Brad Hyatt purchased a three-bedroom home with sweeping views of the Cascades, Mount Rainier and Mount Adams.

Their house sits more than 4 miles east of this Central Washington community, beyond the reach of Selah’s public water system. So, the couple and their two children relied on a well punched into a basalt lava rock aquifer to quench their thirst, cook, clean and bathe.

In February two U.S. Army representatives knocked on the Hyatts’ door to deliver cases of bottled water and a carefully worded letter that noted a “potential risk to human health.”

The Hyatts’ well was one of 300 residential drinking water wells tested for contamination from two firefighting foam chemicals that seeped into groundwater flows from the Army’s Yakima Training Center.

Seattle Times, October 23, 2022