Questions remain about reason for leak, safety of drinking water and where salt can be sourced for roads during winter

When water last month began gushing through a crack in the ceiling of a Morton Salt mine in Ohio, the company had only one option: shut the mine down for good.

For locals in and around Fairport Harbor, it means the loss of 77 jobs; but for the wider region, which depends on its salt reserves to keep roads ice- and snow-free every winter, it could mean travel chaos.