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ST. JOHN PARISH (WGNO)–There are new details in the amoeba-plagued water system in St. John Parish.

State Police are now investigating data inconsistencies related to the case.

WGNO News Reporter Darian Trotter has more from parish leaders and reaction from neighbors.

“At first we thought we couldn’t even drink the water;  and then they said, naw you can drink the water. Just gotta make sure it don’t go up our nose,” neighbor Morgan Gregoire said.

Amid deadly amoeba concerns and efforts to evaluate water treatment in St. John Parish, Louisiana State Police have begun an investigation into record-keeping inconsistencies.

It was the subject in a series of phone calls Tuesday with parish leaders.

“Now please keep in mind out of all of these calls with state police, the department of health and hospitals, numerous conference calls that there was never an accusation made with regard to fraudulent or criminal activity by anyone in the utilities department,” Parish President Natalie Robottom said.

The investigation centers on the processes used by the parish in the recent discovery of a brain eating amoeba in its treated water system.

Parish leaders say inconsistencies stem from the lack of knowledge of the new rule for collecting and reporting data.

“It’s our understanding that our employees actually did an initial sampling or not and did some flushing and once they reached the point-five that is what they recorded. But they didn’t record all of the prior steps to that,” Robottom said.

The Department of Health and Hospitals called upon State Police, because the agency does not conduct investigations of its own.

Morgan Gregoire thinks it’s a good idea for his family and his parish neighbors.

“Cause I think when you’re dealing with something like that I worked at a chemical plant, it’s always best to have a third party kind of looking over your shoulder and comparing data all the time,” he said.

“We have cooperated fully with the department of health & hospitals and actively gone above and beyond their recommendations,” Robottom said.

The investigation seeks to examine  why a water sample collected at the furthest point in the system showed no chlorine, when prior reports by the parish show acceptable levels.

State health officials will soon sample water in 70 locations for a 60-day period.

During that time, levels must reach the state minimum to keep the amoeba  under control.