Gulf oil spill causes health problems to clean-up workers
There are 47,000 people working on the clean-up of the gulf oil spill and there are many concerns regarding their health and safety since the job might take months or years to complete. Dr. Jon LaPook sets as an example the story of Garry Stubblefield, a man who was an Exxon Valdez clean-up worker, and whose life and health have been forever jeopardized by the contact with oil 20 years ago and who can not breath normally ever since. After the Exxon Valdez spill Stubblefield worked on a barge that was supposed to clean the shores by spraying hot water onto them, but he was given no protection equipment.
He started feeling sick and he was told by the doctors that he caught a flu virus, but then he started forgetting things and another visit to a specialist concluded that he suffered permanent injuries on his his brain and respiratory system.
The Exxon Valdez spill was followed by numerous environmental studies, but no one cared to study the health state of the people that have been working there, although thousands of people complained about respiratory problems. There were over 400 oil spills since 1960, but only 7 of them were studied for their impact on people working there. Studies of clean-up workers health state showed respiratory problems, hormonal changes and even DNA damages that might eventually lead to cancer.
2 Responses to Gulf oil spill causes health problems to clean-up workers