‘Miracle’ Water Seized for Health Tests

Authorities wary of cholera confiscated 19 bottles of water from a Mexican well that some believe has miraculous healing power.

The faithful say they will do almost anything to get the precious liquid.

Federal officials fear that the water, from a well in Tlacotepec in central Mexico, could carry cholera or other diseases.

U.S. Customs Service agents began seizing the water Wednesday from passengers arriving at Los Angeles International Airport.

If the water is found to be free of disease, airlines will notify passengers as to how they can get it back, customs spokesman John Miller said.

Believers contend that the water can cure any disease. In recent months, thousands of people from throughout Mexico and the United States have journeyed to the well to fill water jugs.

Ezequiel Lopez, 52, said he drinks eight small glasses a day for diabetes and other health problems. He and his wife, Juana, traveled to Tlacotepec in February and waited in line three days to fill four, five-gallon jugs.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do if I can’t get any more,” said Juana Lopez, of Orange.

The federal Centers for Disease Control is testing the seized water. Results will be available next week, a CDC inspector said.