Just a few days ago, Duke Energy, the largest utility company in North Carolina, said they weren’t concerned about the ponds of coal ash that might be flooded by Hurricane Florence. Now, at least one of those ponds has given way, releasing 2,000 cubic yards of the ash, according to NBC.

Coal ash is a highly toxic byproduct of coal power plants that is linked to respiratory illnesses and cancer. It contains heavy metals like arsenic, lead, mercury and selenium.

When one of the slopes of a pond at a closed power station outside of Wilmington, NC collapsed during the storm, Duke says that the ash within most likely flowed into their cooling pond, Sutton Lake. “The company hasn’t yet determined if the weir that drains the cooling pond was open or whether…