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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Oliver Laughland in Port Sulphur and Sara Sneath in Buras with photographs by Bryan Tarnowski

‘Everything out the faucet is salt’: Louisianans struggle as drinking water crisis persists

New Orleans Louisiana the Mississippi River Mississippi Plaquemines
Woman in floral shirt sits for portrait inside by cases of water
Leah Chan, who lives in Buras, Louisiana. Photograph: Bryan Tarnowski

The first time Leah Chan’s hair fell out, her heart pounded and she wept with fear.

It was June this year, and the 55-year-old worried that the thick clumps left in her hands were a sign of cancer. But her doctor suspected another cause: the water running through her pipes.

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