GOLDSBORO, N.C. (WNCN) — Samples from the Neuse River in Wayne County indicate there’s no coal ash in the water of the river.

Duke Energy’s H.F. Lee plant is located on the Neuse River– causing it to be flooded when Hurricane Matthew had record water levels in Goldsboro.

The state environmental department evaluated conditions and determined that a minimal amount of coal ash was released from one of three inactive basins on site.RELATED: CBS North Carolina’s complete Hurricane Matthew coverage

“Folks in North Carolina have so much to deal with right now. They’re facing such tragedy and such challenges. This situation is safe. The situation is fine. We’re going to make some repairs to those basins and return them to a good, and normal state. Not to worry,” Duke Energy Spokeswoman Paige Sheehan said.

The ash at Lee will be excavated by 2028.