By Michael Muskal, Los Angeles Times

A ban on drinking water in Toledo, Ohio’s fourth-largest city, was lifted Monday morning after tests showed that toxins had returned to acceptable levels, city officials announced.

Hundreds of thousands of residents in the city were told not to drink tap water last week after an algae bloom in Lake Erie contaminated the water.

“The water is fine,” Eric Zgodzinski of the Toledo-Lucas County Health Department said at the news conference. “It’s safe to drink.”

The water issue prompted Gov. John Kasich to declare an emergency last week.

Residents were told not to drink the water or use it for washing dishes or brushing teeth.

Truckloads of bottled water were delivered from across the state.

AFP Photo/Franck Fife

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