(The Associated Press circulated the following article by Jacob Jordan on April 22.)
GRANITEVILLE, S.C. — Word of another death possibly linked to the toxic train wreck here almost four months ago has spread across this rural town, worrying residents who fear the lasting health effects of inhaling the toxic chemical.
A 51-year-old man who had been on oxygen ever since two Norfolk Southern trains collided and ruptured a chlorine tanker died earlier this week. The death of Leonard Mathis, whose family says he was healthy until he drove into the chlorine cloud the morning of Jan. 6, has heightened concerns among some in this close-knit community.
Ruth Coleman, who retired from her job at the Savannah River Site following the crash, said she is coughing, has nose bleeds, skin rashes and is throwing up blood. Coleman, who lives less than a quarter-mile from the railroad tracks, also is concerned about her children and grandchildren’s health.
“Everybody is worried,” Coleman said. “Everybody is concerned about their health.”
Coleman remembered seeing Mathis a few weeks ago in his truck with his oxygen tank. Mathis said he was going to be OK and was even joking around with Coleman, she said.
“You can’t say that you’re going to be all right because you don’t know,” said Coleman, 56.
Mathis, a brick mason born and raised in Graniteville, didn’t have any health problems before the crash, his attorney said.
“His health had simply continued to decline. He had been on a ventilator since the spill,” attorney Reginald Simmons said. “He worked diligently up until that time of being caught in the plume. He had not returned to work since.”
Dr. Jerry Gibson of the state Department of Health and Environmental Control said there’s not a lot known about the effects of chlorine inhalation but hopes to study the residents to find out more about any long-term illnesses. Gibson said post-traumatic stress also can be a factor.
The severity of the injuries depends on how much chlorine was inhaled and whether there’s any infection, said Dr. Michael Haynes, a pulmonary critical care specialist with University Medical Associates in Augusta, Ga.
“Most people who don’t die of this get well,” said Haynes, who continues to see about 10 Graniteville residents. “There are cases, certainly, well-documented cases of people who do end up with chronic lung damage and I don’t want to minimize that. But that’s the exception rather than the rule.”
Haynes also said his job is made more difficult because settlement money and litigation is involved. At least 20 lawsuits, ranging from personal injury to property damage, have been filed.
“One of the most important, valid assessments that can be made is an honest history” from the patient, Haynes said.
Haynes said he wasn’t calling anyone in the town a liar, but said studies have shown that illnesses are sometimes exaggerated, sometimes even subliminally.
Coleman said her doctor has told her that she’ll be suffering from asthma-like effects for the rest of her life.
Michael Meeds, who lives about 100 feet from the derailment site and was awaken in the pre-dawn hours Jan. 6, said he is feeling perfectly healthy, but knows some people are concerned.
“There’s a lot of people that are doing a lot worse than I,” he said.