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1 The Eighth Circuit's flexible interpretation of of 1981, the City of New Brighton was advised both of the when a cause of action accrues has been followed in other ! presence of. contaminants in its city wells and the recommendation jurisdictions and is generally employed when the nature of that certain wells in the City be closed. Thus, in their the injury is such that there are no immediate manifestations case, their cause of action clearly accrued in the summer of damages on which to seek redress. In• such 'instances, of 1981 when they received a letter from the Minnesota Department courts look not to the 'date of injury, but rather to when of Health advising them of the contaminants and the need the plaintiff had reason to know that. he had been injured. to close the wells. In St. Anthony's case, the City received Portis v. United States, 483 F.2d 670 (4th Cir. 1973). This notice in the summer of 1982 that low level volatile organic rule does not, however, allow one who knows that an injurious compounds were found in Well No. 3. In early 1984, perhaps tort has been committed against him to delay in filing a March, the City received a letter from the Minnesota Department suit until the time, however long, that the precise extent of Health recommending that Well No. 3 be removed from service. of damages are known. The running of a statute of limitations However, since October 1983, the City has not used Well No. does not await a determination of the full extent of injury. 3 due, apparently, to the increasing levels of volatile organic 483 F.2d at 673. In fact, for purposes of determining when compounds. the statute of limitations starts to run, damages are no Based on the foregoing, the date St. Anthony's longer speculative when there is enough evidence to allow cause of action accrued may be the date on which it received the issue to go to the jury . . . even though better evidence notice that its wells had become contaminated, namely the of damage might become available at a later time. Monona summer of 1982, or the date on which either the City ceased Shores Inc. v. United States Steel Corporation, 374 F. Supp. to use Well No. 3, namely October 1983, or the date the Minnesota 930 (D. Minn. 1973). Department of Health recommended that the well be removed Based on the foregoing, the City of St. Anthony's from service, namely, early 1984. cause of action accrued when it first discovered or through It is reasonable for St. Anthony to treat October due diligence could have discovered its groundwater contamination 1983, when it first ceased to use Well No. 3 and damages i problem. The experience of the City of New Brighton is somewhat j manifested themselves, as the date its cause of action accrued, distinct from that of the City of St. Anthony. In the summer + rather than the date it received the Minnesota Department 1 16 - j - 17 - t • .. ,y„� 1 > , .err � ---r-(^�.-'-"-- ,