Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Corexit chemical dispersant used by BP during Gulf oil disaster linked to horrific injuries...

English: Logo of the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Español: Logo de la Agencia de Protección Ambiental. El EPA dirige las ciencias ambientales de los Estados Unidos. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

(NaturalNews) A man who is now a paraplegic and who is also going blind has filed a lawsuit against British Petroleum (BP) and its related companies; Halliburton; Transocean; NALCO; ConocoPhilips and several other companies involved with the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster that began on April 20, 2010, in the Gulf of Mexico. According to the suit, BP officials lied about the safety of Corexit, an oil dispersant sprayed throughout the Gulf, which resulted in serious and permanent injuries for a dive team that helped with cleanup efforts.

David Hogan first began helping with Gulf cleanup efforts on June 1, 2010. But almost immediately, he noticed that something was off with the way oil was sinking below the surface, and how it was sticking to his and his team's wetsuits. But after bringing this anomaly to the attention of a BP "health and safety" officer, he was reassured that everything was just fine, and that there was absolutely no health risk from exposure to the oil and any related chemicals that might accompany it.

But it turns out that this was completely false information, as the Corexit dispersant chemicals sprayed in the Gulf after the disaster began -- reports says more than 1.8 million gallons of Corexit were dumped into the Gulf -- are known to be severely neurotoxic. But this information was deliberately withheld from Hogan and his team upon inquiry, which reassured them that their several months of diving work was going to be problem-free.

In the end, Hogan and his team ended up with permanent injuries that left several of them, including Hogan, completely unable to walk. They also developed neurological problems, as well as vision problems that gradually resulted in permanent blindness. Several members of the team became so injured and hopeless that they actually committed suicide.

Hogan and his wife are now seeking damages for this heinous crime against humanity, which has left at least two men dead and one permanently debilitated. According to the lawsuit, Hogan, who had previously been in optimal shape and of good health, has lost 60 pounds, is bound to a wheelchair, and suffers from cognitive problems, seizures, and vertigo as a result of repeated exposure to Corexit.

Federal government complicit in Corexit coverup

For a while after the Gulf disaster began, federal authorities, including those at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), had refused to require full disclosure of the chemicals used in Corexit. But after being repeatedly pressed on the issue, they finally caved, which ended up exposing several highly toxic chemical ingredients known to cause serious health damage similar to what Hogan and his now-dead colleagues have endured (http://www.naturalnews.com/028974_Corexit_dispersants.html).

So not only is BP and its cohort of multinational oil industry barons at fault for the damage caused by Corexit, but so are the government officials and agencies that have been complicit all along in this massive coverup. Further investigation into this matter is needed not only to expose the truth about Corexit, but also to bring justice to those that have suffered or died as a result of exposure to it.

Sources for this article include:

http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/05/04/46224.htm

http://blog.sfgate.com