Affecting nearly 100,000 homes and businesses, with an estimated total of approximately 300,000 people, Freedom Industries suffered a chemical spill that contaminated public water systems in nine counties in Charleston, West Virginia metropolitan area. This issue raised a number of problems that affected not only residents of the contaminated regions, but the company itself and the government. Forming an emergency plan early could have significantly reduced or prevented the dangers of the chemical spill or at least made it easier for those in command to effectively respond to the spill. The lack of planning and communication between Freedom Industries and the residents of West Virginia's nine counties had major consequences that greatly affected everyone involved. Counties affected by the chemical spill include Kanawha, Boone, Cabell, Clay, Jackson, Lincoln, Logan, Putnam and Roane County. On January 9, 2014, nearly 5,000 gallons of a chemical produced by Eastman Chemicals identified as 4-methylcyclohexane methanol classified as raw MCHM, a coal cleaning chemical with a licorice odor leaked from the Freedom Industries water plant into the Elk River in West Virginia. “According to the Material Safety Data Sheet, raw MCHM is a mixture of water plus six chemicals which are 4-MCHM, 4-(methoxymethyl)cyclohexanemethanol, methyl 4-methylcyclohexanecarboxylate, dimethyl 1,4-cyclohexanedicarboxylate, methanol and 4-cyclohexanedicarboxylate". " (Eastmann, 2011). Little is known about this substance and the studies conducted are not sufficient to conclude whether or not there is one or more chronic effects over a period of time. (Register Herald) This part... half of the document ...we stayed abreast of the situation and ensured the safety of drinking water for residents of contaminated counties. However, providing the public with detailed information on how the company handled the situation could have been resolved more diplomatically. Perhaps to ensure that an incident of this magnitude does not happen again, a protection plan could be developed. This can be incorporated into new hire orientation, improve employee training and address proper protocol, response procedures and modalities. materials management. Visual inspections can be conducted regularly by qualified personnel to inspect equipment and other tools used in the facility. By regularly examining your facility and discovering that there are malfunctions or potential for equipment failure, you can timely detect and repair them before serious damage occurs..