'We're not done!' Feisty TV Reporter confronts CEO on chemical spill that's left 300,000 people without water for FOUR days ...as he brazenly drinks BOTTLED water



More than 300,000 people haven't had water to drink or wash in West Virginia since Thursday

Chemical company Freedom Industries are to blame for the spillage which has polluted the local water supply

Company president Gary Southern appeared before cameras on Friday evening to apologize but he failed to convince

He tried to cut short his press conference by complaining to reporters that he had had a long day

He foolishly drank from a bottle of water throughout the interview, despite the fact that his company was preventing others from that very luxury

When he turned his back to finish the interview, local reporter Kallie Cart demanded he come back because they weren't finished

South Industries and their local PR agency parted ways on Sunday following the media relations disaster for the chemical company

It could be days before the residents of nine counties in W Virginia can drink or wash in the tap water again

The CEO of the company at the center of a chemical leak in West Virginia that has left more than 300,000 people without drinking water for four days is facing mounting criticism following his arrogant display before the television cameras on Friday night.



Freedom Industries President Gary Southern sounded rude and aloof as he attempted to cut short his press conference in Charleston after complaining to reporters that he had had a long day.



To make matters worse Southern repeatedly swigged from a water of bottle, seemingly impervious to the fact that his company had disrupted water services in nine counties, depriving 300,000 people of tap water to drink or even wash themselves.

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Thirsty work: Freedom Industries President Gary Southern repeatedly swigged from a water of bottle on Friday, seemingly impervious to the fact that his company had depriving 300,000 people of tap water to drink or even wash themselves

Beware: More than 300,000 people have been told to indefinitely avoid drinking or even touching tap water following Thursday's chemical spill in Charleston, West Virgina

During his abbreviated press conference, Southern issued an apology for the chemical spill, but he quickly turned terse when it came times for questions .



‘Look guys, it’s been an extremely long day. I’m having a lot of trouble talking at the moment. I’d appreciate it if we could wrap this thing up,’ he complained.

But before Southern could walk away, he was quickly interrupted by local news anchor/reporter Kallie Cart from WCHS8.



‘We actually have a lot of questions,’ said the persistent reporter. ‘It’s been a long day for a lot of people who don’t have water.’

Local news anchor/reporter Kallie Cart from WCHS8 has won plaudits for her dogged interview style

Award for worst media interview ever goes to CEO of WV co responsible for chemical spill. Thank you Kallie Cart for schooling him! Bravo! — janlamoglia (@janlamoglia) January 12, 2014





When her line of questioning started to get a little awkward for Southern, he made another ill-judged attempt to wrap things up by saying ‘that’s all we have time for.’



Once again Cart was quick to stop Southern in his tracks.

'We're not done!' she shouted as Southern turned his back on the cameras.



The look he gives her as he realizes that he is going to have to take another question is priceless.



Cart has received praise for her handling of the water crisis and for her dogged interview style on both Facebook and Twitter, while Southern's ill-judged lack of compassion has been compared to Tony Hayward, the disgraced former boss of BP.

In the wake of Southern's disastrous TV appearance, Freedom Industries' local public relations firm Charleston Ryan Associates announced on Sunday that it has decided it will no longer represent the chemicals company , reports WCHS.



Video: Watch Gary Southern's disastrous press conference







If looks could kill: Southern quickly grew terse when it came time for questions and he shot Cart an extremely dirty look when she called him back after he attempted to end their interview

@hejjet anyone know about Gary Southern...reminded me of BP disaster head Tony Hayward, which is not a compliment. — Ken Keenan (@kjkeenan1950) January 12, 2014





It could be days before uncontaminated water is flowing again for about 300,000 people in nine West Virginia counties.



Chris Laws found bottled water on Saturday for his two elderly next-door neighbors.



‘They can't get out,’ said Laws, 42, of Marmet, a coal miner. 'I'm keeping an eye on them. You got to watch out for your neighbors. They're the ones who are going to watch out for you.'



He said he was angry at the company at the center of the leak, Freedom Industries.



'A lot of people are facing bad situations because of this,' he said. 'They're struggling. What I don't understand is how did this happen?'



The emergency began on Thursday following complaints to West Virginia American Water about a licorice-type odor in the tap water. The source: the chemical 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, which had leaked out of a 40,000-gallon tank at a Freedom Industries facility along the Elk River.



State officials said on Saturday they believe about 7,500 gallons leaked. Some of the chemical was contained before flowing into the river; it's not clear exactly how much entered the water supply.



It could take days for clean tap water to flow again. First, water sample test results must consistently show that the chemical's presence in the public water system is at or below 1 parts per million, the level recommended by federal agencies, West Virginia American Water President Jeff McIntyre said on Saturday at a news conference.

Southern, right, made an ill-judged attempt to wrap things up by saying 'that's all we have time for' and turning his back on the cameras while being questioned by Cart, left







Most visitors have cleared out of Charleston while locals are either staying home or driving out of the area to find a hot meal or a shower elsewhere. Orders not to use tap water for much other than flushing toilets mean that the spill is an emergency not just for the environment but for local businesses.



'I haven't been able to cook anything at home and was hoping they were open,' Bill Rogers, 52, said outside a closed Tudor's Biscuit World in Marmet, just east of Charleston. 'It seems like every place is closed. It's frustrating. Really frustrating.'



There's no question businesses have been hurt - particularly restaurants and hotels, said Matt Ballard, president of the Charleston Area Alliance, the state's largest regional chamber of commerce.



'I don't know that it can be quantified at this point because we don't know how long it will last,' Ballard said. 'I'm hoping a solution by early next week so business can get back to normal.'



The Alliance is urging business owners to check their insurance policies to see if they can make claims over lost sales. It plans to hold workshops to assist businesses with those issues, Ballard said.

Dire need: Employees of the South Charleston Public Works Department help local residents to obtain water as officials remained mum as to win the tap water would become safe again

All told, 32 people have sought treatment at hospitals for symptoms such as nausea. Of those, four were admitted to the Charleston Area Medical Center but their conditions weren't immediately available.



Federal authorities, including the U.S. Chemical Safety Board, opened an investigation into Thursday's spill.



West Virginia National guard officials said they need a 24-hour period in which samples at the water treatment facility are below 1 part per million. Many samples are meeting the mark, but some are still hitting slightly above 1 part per million.



After they achieve that goal, West Virginia American Water Company can begin sampling across the nine-county region and flushing the system. That process would take days, said company president Jeff McIntyre.



According to Department of Environmental Protection officials, Freedom Industries is exempt from DEP inspections and permitting since it stores chemicals, and doesn't produce them.



Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said he will work with his environmental agency chief on tightening regulation of chemical storage facilities in the current legislative session.

Local businesses remain closed and unable to serve food and water in Charleston, West Virginia on Sunday after a chemical spill on Thursday in the Elk River

In downtown, the store Taylor Books usually fills the 40 seats in its cafe. But the cafe was shut down by the state Department of Health on Friday because it said employees had no way to safely wash their hands before serving customers.



On Saturday only three people sat in the bookstore using the wireless Internet. Manager Dan Carlisle said he canceled a musician scheduled to play that night and the store was going to close five hours early.



'It's pretty annoying,' Carlisle said about Freedom Industries' response to the spill. 'I feel like you should just be honest with people immediately.'



At Charleston's Yeager Airport, seven inbound and outbound flights were canceled. The reason for the cancellations was an agreement between the airlines and unions for flight crews and pilots that hotels meet a certain threshold of service, and the lack of water violates the agreement, said airport spokesman Brian Belcher.



State officials were working over the weekend on alternative sources of water that may allow restaurants to reopen. Several businesses that had arranged other sources of water were inspected Saturday.

