MIRAMAR, Fla. – The City of Miramar's contractors have been cleaning contaminated canals, but although they have removed debris some neighbors were concerned about the possibility of pollutants that could be left over in the water.
Michael Kaufman is among the Miramar residents who have been worried about safety of the water since Hurricane Irma caused a sewage spill.
"We don't know what's sitting at the bottom," Kaufman said. "We don't know to what extent there is communication between the canal and our well systems."
The city hired contractors to clean the canals. A firm's independent testing showed that the well Kaufman's family uses for drinking, cooking, and bathing was contaminated. Some of his neighbors had the same issue.
"After mine was sanitized, a couple of days later I had additional independent testing performed that showed that my well was recontaminated, and that was a real concern," Kaufman said.
City officials say they have done somewhere between 80 and 90 tests of the wells and say the only issues found were there before Hurricane Irma's sewage spill.
This didn't appease Kaufman and others who have hired an independent testing firm to come in and re-test canals in the area. They will also be testing for sediment that may have settled on the bottom of the canals.
Natasha Hampton, Miramar's assistant city manager, said the city was committed to making sure that residents' drinking water is safe.
The city also hired an independent testing firm that will be coming next week to test the canal systems and sediment at the bottom of the canals. They have also placed 72 signs to warn the public to avoid fishing in the canals.
"The city recognizes the concerns of the community," Hampton said. "Our goals and every effort is to try to provide assurance that the area is free of contaminants."