The village of Roxana, Illinois is getting a new garage to house its street department workers and equipment. The current building reportedly sits atop an enormous plume of underground benzene.
Illinois Village to Spend $1.5 Million to Escape Benzene-Contaminated Facility
For decades, the Roxana street department garage has been located on top of a dangerous plume of benzene. The toxic chemical compound is derived from petroleum and coal. The World Health Organization warns that exposure to benzene causes a number of blood related cancers, as well as aplastic anemia.
Benzene exposure is a special hazard for garage workers who come into frequent contact with gasoline or crude oil, both of which contain benzene. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Americans used 137 billion gallons of gasoline in 2014.
In a 2012 lawsuit, the village of Roxana alleged that the garage site contains 2,600 times the legal limit of benzene. To reduce any further health hazard to workers, the village’s employees have already moved to a different location. The contaminated garage, however, still houses government vehicles and supplies. The move to a safer location was the “environmentally conscious” thing to do for government workers.
Contact Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel to Learn More About Filing a Benzene Lawsuit
The lawyers at Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel have been representing people who have been sickened by toxic exposures for more than twenty years. Have you or a loved one been exposed to benzene and been diagnosed with a related cancer? If so, call our benzene attorneys at 800.226.9880 to learn more about how we can assist you with a benzene lawsuit.
