'It Feels Like a Funeral' : Rockingham County Residents React to Coal Ash Spill

It's been three weeks since Duke Energy announced that a major pipe leak was causing thousands of gallons of toxic coal ash to empty into the Dan River. The incident in Rockingham County is estimated to be the third-largest coal ash spill in the nation's history.

Since then, federal prosecutors have opened a criminal probe into the spill, issuing subpoenas to the state Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Duke Energy for documents and communications related to the pond from 2010 to the present. 

WFDD contributor Justin Catanoso was in Eden over the weekend to get local reaction. He sat down with WFDD's Keri Brown to talk about the impact the spill is having on local communities.

That was Justin Catanoso, director of the journalism program at Wake Forest University and a regular contributor to WFDD. He spoke with WFDD's Keri Brown from our studio on campus.