Residents of the Canadian town were shocked when they opened their water taps and pink-colored water came out, while authorities in the town of "Onoway" said this was caused by opening a wrong valve that allowed potassium permanganate to leak into the water, according to "Sky News".

Chemical substances are widely used in water treatment to remove iron and rotten egg smell, which can arise from other materials in the pipeline networks.

Experts say these substances may cause skin burns and pain in the throat and abdomen if ingested, while families said they were afraid to drink the water for fear it contained unsafe levels of chemicals.

"Dale Krasno," Mayor of Onoway, said: "We did not receive any alert from the Alberta sewage treatment company, and there were no indications of a risk to public health".

For his part, the mayor apologized for the incident.