Did You Develop Cancer from the Water at Camp Lejeune?
A new law makes it easier for victims exposed to contaminated water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune to sue the U.S. government for illnesses and injuries they have suffered, including cancer, birth defects, Parkinson’s disease, and wrongful death.
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Camp Lejeune water claim
A new law makes it easier for victims exposed to contaminated water at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune to sue the U.S. government for illnesses and injuries they have suffered, including cancer, birth defects, Parkinson’s disease, and wrongful death.
With the passage of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022 comes the first step for U.S. Marines, their family members, and others who lived or worked at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina between 1953 and 1987, to pursue compensation for injuries and illnesses allegedly sustained from exposure to the base’s contaminated drinking water. Beginning in at least 1953, the water supply at Camp Lejeune was known to contain toxic chemicals that as many as one million people at the base were potentially exposed to by drinking, bathing in, and washing with the water, and this exposure was allowed to continue until the Marine Corps finally shut down the contaminated wells in the late 1980s. If you or a loved one was stationed at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987, and you have suffered from serious illnesses like non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, aplastic anemia, bladder cancer, liver cancer, or other major health problems, contact an experienced Camp Lejeune water contamination attorney as soon as possible to discuss your legal options.
What Was the Problem with the Water at Camp Lejeune?
The water supplied to Camp Lejeune from two major water treatment plants was found to be polluted with toxic chemicals like benzene, vinyl chloride (VC), trichloroethylene (TCE), and tetrachloroethylene (PCE), which have been linked to serious adverse health outcomes.
From the early 1950s until the late 1980s, the water supply at Camp Lejeune contained toxic chemicals at levels 240- to 3,400-times higher than what is considered “safe” by federal regulators. Thousands of people who lived, worked, or were otherwise exposed to the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, including infants and young children, have suffered serious health consequences allegedly caused by exposure to toxic chemicals like vinyl chloride, trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, and benzene. These chemicals likely increased the risk of cancer and other serious health problems among military servicemembers, their families, and civilian workers stationed at the base during that time.
According to a report provided by the Department of Health and Human Services’ (DHHS) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), exposure to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune occurred primarily as a result of polluted water supplied by the Hadnot Point and Tarawa Terrace water treatment plants, which “have historically supplied finished water to the majority of family housing units at the Base and were contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs).” The contaminated water has been traced back to multiple sources, including industrial area spills, leaking underground storage tanks, and waste disposal sites.
Up until now, the U.S. government has avoided taking responsibility for the harm caused by the contaminated water supply at Camp Lejeune, using a legal loophole that shielded the government from liability for claims brought by injured and ill veterans and their families. With the signing of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, veterans and their loved ones finally have an opportunity to seek legal justice and financial compensation for the harm they have suffered. The Justice Act is part of a larger veterans’ healthcare and benefits bill called the Honoring Our PACT Act of 2022, which was signed into law on August 10, 2022. The Act opens up a two-year window during which affected individuals can sue the U.S. government for damages related to Camp Lejeune contaminated water exposure.
Possible Side Effects Leading to a Camp Lejeune Lawsuit
The contamination of the Camp Lejeune water supply from the 1950s to the 1980s is one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history. During that time, wells polluted with toxic industrial chemicals supplied water to as many as one million Marines stationed at the base, as well as their civilian family members and contractors who worked at the base. The people potentially affected by the contaminated water include unborn babies who were exposed to the toxic chemicals in utero. Some examples of side effects that may be tied to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune Include the following:
- Aplastic anemia
- Bladder cancer
- Kidney cancer
- Liver cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Brain cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
- Lung cancer
- Ovarian cancer
- Prostate cancer
- Multiple myeloma
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Parkinson’s disease
- Birth defects
- Cardiac defects
- Female infertility
Link Between Camp Lejeune Water and Serious Adverse Health Outcomes
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are gases that are emitted from certain products or processes, and many VOCs, like those found in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune, have been linked to cancer and other potentially life-threatening illnesses. ATSDR has been assessing the potential health risks of exposure to hazardous substances in the drinking water at Camp Lejeune since the late 1980s, and the agency noted in a 2014 report: “It is ATSDR’s position that past exposures […] to trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), vinyl chloride, and other contaminants in the drinking water at the Camp Lejeune likely increased the risk of cancers (kidney, multiple myeloma, leukemias, and others), adverse birth outcomes, and other adverse health effects of residents (including infants and children), civilian workers, Marines and Naval personnel at Camp Lejeune.” In January 2017, ATSDR issued a report assessing 16 diseases potentially linked to contaminants in the water supply at Camp Lejeune. According to the report, ATSDR found evidence for a causal association between exposure to TCE, PCE, benzene, and vinyl chloride and a host of potentially life-threatening diseases, like kidney cancer, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, multiple myeloma, all types of leukemia, liver cancer, bladder cancer, Parkinson’s disease, kidney diseases, systemic sclerosis/scleroderma, and cardiac defects.
History of the Camp Lejeune Water Contamination
1942 – U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune is established in Jacksonville, North Carolina.
October 1980 – Water testing at Camp Lejeune detects trace levels of industrial solvents in the water supply.
October 1980 – Water testing conducted by an Army lab finds that treated water from Hadnot Point is “highly contaminated with low molecular weight halogenated hydrocarbons.” The Army notifies Marine leadership about the test results.
1982 – A lab hired to test the drinking water at Camp Lejeune finds “synthetic organic cleaning solvents” in water supplied to two of the base’s largest living areas, but the Marine Corps does not investigate the source of the contamination.
1984 – The Marine Corps begins testing the wells directly.
July 1984 – Scientists uncover levels of benzene in one Camp Lejeune well at 380 parts per billion, an amount that “far exceeds” the 5 parts per billion safety limit set by federal regulators. The well isn’t shut down until November 1984.
February 1985 – The Marine Corps finally shuts down the most contaminated wells supplying water to Camp Lejeune.
1988 – A memo sent from a Camp Lejeune lawyer to the assistant facilities manager indicates that the Marine Corps knew for years that the base’s fuel farm was leaking 1,500 gallons of fuel per month and took no action to address the leak or the “continuing potential threat to human health and the environment.”
October 1989 – The EPA adds Camp Lejeune to a list of hazardous waste areas known as Superfund sites, citing “contaminated groundwater, sediment, soil and surface water resulting from base operations and waste handling practices.”
1992 – An environmental contractor’s draft report from a 1984 water test lists the level of benzene found in a Camp Lejeune well at 38 parts per billion instead of the actual measurement of 380 parts per billion.
1994 – The contractor’s final report omits any mention of benzene altogether.
1996 – Minutes from a meeting with one of the contractors that tested the Camp Lejeune wells indicate that the fuel farm had lost 800,000 gallons of fuel and recovered only 500,000 gallons. An employee is quoted as saying that benzene was “in the deeper portion of the aquifer” and that the “fuel farm is definitely the source.”
January 2014 – ATSDR issues a position on the water contamination issue at Camp Lejeune, finding that “past exposures from the 1950s through February 1985 to trichloroethylene (TCE), tetrachloroethylene (PCE), vinyl chloride, and other contaminants in the drinking water at the Camp Lejeune likely increased the risk of cancers.”
August 2022 – President Biden signs into law the Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2022, which addresses toxic exposures during military service. The bill includes an important provision known as the Camp Lejeune Justice Act of 2022, which allows individuals who believe they have been adversely affected by exposure to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune to sue the government for damages.
September 2022 – In the first month alone, more than 5,000 administrative claims are filed under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, demanding compensation for those dealing with serious and potentially life-threatening health issues allegedly due to the tainted water supply at Camp Lejeune.
Lawsuits Against the Government for Cancer, Other Illnesses
Over the past 30 years, thousands of U.S. Marines and their families members who have suffered injuries allegedly caused by exposure to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune have had their personal injury claims unfairly denied by the U.S. government. Finally, with the passage of the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, affected individuals and families can hold the government accountable and pursue the compensation they deserve for their injuries and suffering.
Individuals pursuing a legal claim under the Justice Act for toxic exposure to chemicals in the water supply at Camp Lejeune are required to file an administrative claim with the Navy’s Office of the Judge Advocate General (JAG) before pursuing a lawsuit in the Eastern District of North Carolina, where the cases are being heard. Thousands of administrative claims have already been filed by military service members, their loved ones, and others who lived or worked at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987 and were exposed to the water there for at least 30 days. Estimates indicate that the total number of Camp Lejeune lawsuits brought against the federal government could reach upwards of 200,000 or higher.
Why We Think the Government Should Be Held Liable for Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Side Effects
According to emerging evidence regarding the tragic and entirely avoidable circumstances of the Camp Lejeune water contamination, the government knew about the polluted water for decades and failed to warn veterans, guardsmen, reservists, families, contractors, and other individuals who lived or worked at the base about their potential toxic exposure. According to ATSDR, as many as one million military servicemembers and their loved ones may have been exposed to the toxic drinking water at Camp Lejeune over the course of 34 years, and attorneys reviewing claims for alleged victims predict that the government could face hundreds of thousands of Camp Lejeune lawsuits for cancer and other serious health consequences. By filing legal claims under the Camp Lejeune Justice Act, affected veterans and their family members may finally recover compensation for their medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other damages.
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What should you do? If you have experienced cancer, Parkinson’s disease, birth defects, or other serious side effects, you should contact a lawyer as soon as possible to discuss filing a Camp Lejeune water contamination lawsuit.
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The Camp Lejeune litigation is still in the early stages since the new legislation making it easier for victims to seek compensation for their injuries and illnesses was just signed into law in August 2022. However, in the first month alone, approximately 5,000 claims were brought against the U.S. government over contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. If this trend continues for the remainder of the two-year window, the Camp Lejeune litigation could end up being one of the largest mass torts in U.S. history. Each Camp Lejeune lawsuit involves similar allegations that toxic chemicals in the water supply caused Marines, family members, and others living and working on the base to suffer serious or potentially life-threatening health problems. However, each case involves unique circumstances and health conditions, which is why we recommend speaking to an experienced Camp Lejeune attorney as soon as possible.
If you or someone you love has suffered cancer, Parkinson’s disease, birth defects, cardiac defects, or another qualifying illness you believe to be related to toxic chemicals in the Camp Lejeune water supply, contact our consumer advocates at Consumer Justice Foundation right away. The window for filing a legal claim is just two years, and you don’t want to miss an opportunity to pursue the compensation you deserve from the federal government.
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