As uneducated as the British youth have become about art, some Americans have proven their scientific knowledge is even worse.
Two Florida radio hosts, Val St. John and Scott Fish, were reinstated Wednesday morning after an April Fool’s Day joke landed them in some hot water — and got them suspended.
The longtime DJs announced on their Facebook page Monday that dihydrogen monoxide had contaminated the water supply in Lee County. Many of their Gator Country 101.9 morning show listeners then called the water supply company to inquire about the cleanliness of the water.
Those listeners must have forgotten that dihydrogen monoxide is H2O, otherwise known as water. Yes, St. John and Fish’s big joke was that water had contaminated the water supply.
“They made a bad call,” Gator Country 101.9 General Manager Tony Renda told the Bonita Springs News-Press. “It was a bad call. It is one thing when radio stations change their format or other crazy things they do. But you are messing with one of the big three, food, water or shelter. They just went too far; I just knew I didn’t like that.”
Renda told the News-Press that the station has been sending a message telling listeners St. John and Fish’s joke was, well, a joke, and nothing is wrong with the water supply.
Patty DiPiero from Lee County Utilities is taking the joke very seriously since she is one of the people having to deal with the repercussions of the hosts’ actions.
“When it comes to the drinking water supply, it is critical people understand there is not something wrong,” she told WPTV. “If we did want the news out there, that’s not how we would do it.”
Dianne Holm, public information officer for the Florida Department of Health in Lee County, is on the same side as DiPiero, saying the DJs took the joke too far for legal comfort.
“My understanding is it is a felony to call in a false water quality issue,” Holm said, later adding, “Water supplies are a serious matter.”
Yes, water supplies are a serious matter, especially since some Floridians can’t take a joke.
