Published June 27, 2011 – The Montgomery Advertiser
by Mary Sell
Montgomery Advertiser reporter Mary Sell spoke with three of the hundreds of victims suffering physically, mentally, and emotionally following their work in helping to clean up the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico last spring and summer. The workers were enlisted by BP and other agencies to help clean oil, apply chemical dispersants, and monitor the Gulf Coast beaches following the April 20 disaster when the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and began spewing oil into the Gulf.
Workers report falling ill after spending days at sea inhaling fumes from oil and chemical dispersants or walking the beaches along the coast as clean-up workers combed the sand and shore for oil and tar balls. None of the workers received protective clothing or respirators, as many of the other workers who were in direct contact with the oil and other substances did. And yet, they were working side-by-side with the deadly substances.
Health problems reported by the workers range from severe stomach problems, to respiratory distress, and skin rashes. They are affected mentally and emotionally as well, reporting insomnia, depression, and severe mood swings among the symptoms they link to the oil spill.
Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C., is representing the three workers profiled in the Montgomery Advertiser story, along with at least 200 other clients who claim they fell ill after being exposed to oil and or dispersants. These and other claims have been consolidated in Multidistrict Litigation being handled in U.S. District Court in New Orleans. Beasley Allen attorney Rhon Jones has been assigned to the Plaintiff’s Steering Committee for the MDL.
Read the full story in the Montgomery Advertiser.
