Environmental lawyer Sanders says fly ash pond collapse at TVA coal-fired electric plant buries 15 homes in several feet of ashy sludge.

Today, a massive slug of mud, water and fly ash sludge buried 15 homes when an earthen dike collapsed at a large fly ash pond at TVA’s Kingston coal-fired plant. The 40-acre fly ash pond collapsed in a rural area located outside of Chattanooga, TN. The ensuing mess covered hundreds of acres downstream from the fly ash pond.

News stations are reporting that the force of the massive wall of water, ash, and mud knocked one home off its foundation and buried everything in its wake with 4 to 6 feet of sludge over an area of 250 acres to 400 acres.

U.S. EPA Region 4 staff in Atlanta made an initial estimate that 2.6 million cubic yards of fly ash were released. EPA reported that the pond was designed to contain around 40 million gallons of water, but the agency admitted that it doesn’t know how much water or sludge was actually released.

No injuries have reported at this time. Latest reports claim that about 15 homes have been affected by the failure of the fly ash pond. In response, TVA is mobilizing approximately 30 pieces of equipment and 90 individuals to place barriers to prevent the movement of the ash and to begin clean-up. Teams also will be sampling water in the area and conducting damage assessments.