In 1991, 1,600 residents in south Tucson side settled an $84.5 million dollar lawsuit with Hughes Aircraft (now Raytheon Missile Systems Co.) “claiming the Air Force contractor had been dumping the industrial solvent trichloroethylene (TCE) into the water table for 29 years”1 causing cancers and other problems. And now, more than 1,350 south Tucson residents are coming forward claiming they are also suffering from illnesses (cancers, heart disease and autoimmune disorders such as lupus, which has been linked to TCE) caused by the polluted drinking water.
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South Tucson resident and activist Linda Robles, who is helping people file their claims, has personally experienced “the devastation wrought by contaminated drinking water”; 2 as she’s already lost one daughter to lupus, two of her other children also have the disease, her ex-husband had a kidney tumor removed in 2016, and her granddaughter was diagnosed with kidney nephritis in 2013.
Another claimant, Carmen “Roxie” Castillo, has suffered from lupus, kidney disease, migraines, chronic pain and other conditions since 1992. After watching her 48-year-old friend Michelle Gutierrez died of brain cancer in 2016, she decided enough was enough and has filed a claim as well.
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Tony Roisman, a lawyer who represented Tucson residents in the earlier round of suits, is concerned the residents might have a harder time proving their illnesses are a result of the pollution since more time has passed and the illness could possibly be attributed to age. But let’s hope that’s not the case. We all know that the EPA can try and clean up Superfund sites but the damage is often present for decades.
“The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) confirmed unsafe levels of TCE in South Tucson wells in 1981. The contaminated wells were closed in the 1980s, and the city began treating the affected water in 1994. In addition to TCE, the current round of claims also focuses on 1,4-dioxane, another solvent which was discovered in Tucson’s water in 2002, the Star reported.”3
TCE is listed as a known carcinogen and has been linked to cancer in human and animal studies.
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We will update you as more information becomes available.
