The State - News from Aug. 12, 1985

Fire hydrants were flushed all over Willits to cleanse the small town’s water supply of excessive sodium hydroxide, a caustic chemical routinely used in water treatment. Someone apparently left open a valve that poured more than 100 gallons of the chemical into the water, instead of the 40 gallons normally used to maintain the water’s acid-base balance, said City Manager Cliff Swanson. City officials received a few complaints from people who stepped into showers and suffered mild skin burn, said Swanson. About 4,500 people live in Willits, 120 miles north of San Francisco in Mendocino County.