Tony Tye, Post-Gazette Workers powerwash tennis courts in Shippingport Community Park after residue emitted from FirstEnergy's Bruce Mansfield plant, in background, covered part of the town with a black soot. Click photo for larger image.

Imagine the impact -- and public reaction -- if black paint drizzled from the skies and splattered a community.

That's how Shippingport Police Chief Mike Pantaleo described what happened Saturday evening, when residue spewing from a Bruce Mansfield Power Plant smokestack rained upon part of the Beaver County borough and extended 1 ¹/₂ miles south into Raccoon Township.

"Everything was black," Chief Pantaleo said yesterday. "Our police car was totally black. It was unbelievable. We washed it three times."

He said vehicles had to stop because the black, oily soot smeared windshields, making it impossible to drive. Roads and houses were covered with soot. Anyone wearing a white shirt suddenly discovered it was splattered black.

"It looked like tar on the car. You couldn't peel it off when it dried, but with water it washed right off," Chief Pantaleo said. "I've never seen anything like it -- no one has. It just came down.

"People came to the police station and it looked like someone had dumped black paint on them."

The state Department of Environmental Protection said laboratory tests indicate the residue was acidic and contained silica and fly ash. Fly ash, a byproduct of the coal-burning process in the 2,360-megawatt power plant, can contain potentially hazardous heavy metals.

For that reason, DEP spokeswoman Helen Humphreys said, the residue must undergo further testing to determine whether it could be dangerous.

"But we still don't think there are any health risks," she said.

Ellen Raines, spokeswoman for FirstEnergy Corp., whose subsidiary, FirstEnergy Generation Corp., owns and operates the power plant, said the company's lab tests showed that the residue contained calcium sulfate and coal soot with only traces of fly ash.

"It's not hazardous, and it's not toxic," she said.

The plume originated in the power plant's boiler and scrubber system, Ms. Raines said. But the mystery remains why it went up the smokestack in the first place.

"We're doing a thorough investigation why it happened," she said.

The DEP also is investigating.

Residue splattered about a third of the borough and a portion of Raccoon Township, borough Council President Pat Lampe said.

Raccoon Township Secretary Cheryl Richardson said township officials were awaiting the results of DEP's investigation before deciding on a course of action.

"A lot of people are upset," she said, noting that residents complained that permanent spots remained on their vehicles even after they washed them.

FirstEnergy is offering to power-wash affected houses, cars and driveways in central Beaver County after the unexplained plume rose from the smokestack about 7 p.m. Saturday and continued falling to the ground for about 45 minutes.

Mrs. Lampe said the company also hired mowing companies to cut grass and collect and dispose of soot-laden clippings. It also hired companies to clean swimming pools.

Ms. Raines said anyone whose property was affected should call plant officials at 724-643-2201 and request an inspection.

Mrs. Lampe said FirstEnergy "is taking responsibility for everything,"

Shippingport Borough Park will remain closed at least through tomorrow while facilities are power-washed, grass is mowed and clippings are removed, Chief Pantaleo said.

New borough flags, hung for the Fourth of July, also must be dry-cleaned. For now, he said, FirstEnergy is busy cleaning up the mess it created.