File a Coldwater Creek Contamination Lawsuit

If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with cancer or other unusual illnesses and ever lived next to or played in Coldwater Creek, located in North St. Louis County, Missouri, you may be eligible to file a toxic tort lawsuit. From the 1940s and into the 1980s, Coldwater Creek was contaminated with nuclear waste.

The environmental attorneys at Simmons Law Firm are currently investigating the legal rights of people who were exposed to dangerous levels of nuclear waste while fishing, playing and any other activities that might have resulted in repeated exposures to the creek’s water and soil.

If you or a loved one are seriously ill due to exposure to Coldwater Creek, contact the attorneys at the Simmons Firm today by calling 1-855-988-2456 or by submitting a claim form at www.simmonsbrowder.com/coldwatercreek.

Background

Beginning as early as 1942, the Mallinckrodt Chemical Plant in downtown St. Louis processed uranium as part of its war-time contract with Manhattan Engineering District and, later, the Atomic Energy Commission, during World War II and into the Cold War. Waste products from these activities were later improperly hauled to two additional sites in North County near Lambert International Airport. 

There, the waste was stored in drums that later leaked or was dumped into one of two piles on the properties. Coldwater Creek ran along the borders of both properties. The runoff from the unsecured storage areas flowed into Coldwater Creek, contaminating both sites and an estimated 100 properties along the creek bed.

Testing by the Army Corps of Engineers found that the radioactivity of the soil and ground water at these sites exceeded the accepted dosage level recommendations of the U.S. Department of Energy. Since then, experts have said there is no safe level of radiation exposure.

In 1989, the radioactively contaminated sites were named Superfund Sites by the Environmental Protection Agency. They are currently being remediated, or cleaned up, through the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program (FUSRAP) under the supervision of the Army Corps of Engineers. The sites are known as the ‘St. Louis Airport Site near Coldwater Creek,’ ‘the Hazelwood Interim Storage Site on Latty Avenue’ and the original Mallinckrodt facility in downtown St. Louis.

Clean-up is expected to finish sometime in 2013. Since cleanup first started, nearly 800,000 cubic yards of contaminated soil will have been removed.

Coldwater Creek Contamination

Coldwater Creek begins is the same vicinity of the radioactively contaminated St. Louis Airport site. It then flows northeast through the communities of Bridgeton and Berkeley, then past the Hazelwood site and into Florissant, Black Jack and through the St. Louis area flood plain, where it eventually joins the Missouri River.

Recently, the St. Louis media has frequently reported on illnesses that can be traced back to the creek’s contamination. Residents have reported an unusual number of illnesses like Leukemia or lung cancer.

KMOV video about Waste Site Contaminating Coldwater Creek

Types of Diseases

Concerns are growing that North St. Louis County and the communities bordering Coldwater Creek are experiencing a higher than average rate of rare cancers and other illnesses. Illnesses linked to Coldwater Creek contamination could include:

• Lung Cancer
• Acute Mylogenous Leukemia (AML)
• Other types of Leukemia
• Multiple Myeloma Thyroid Cancer
• Other types of cancers

The Simmons Firm has worked for over a decade protecting the rights of people exposed to toxic substances. We understand the challenges families face when pursing legal action.

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with cancer or other illnesses and regularly played or worked in the creek, contact us today for a free consultation.

News About Coldwater Creek

Nuclear Haste, first published by the Riverfront Times

Compensation for nuclear-bomb workers expanded to new site, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

St. Louis floodplains at risk from radioactive landfill, says WUSTL geologist

Additional Resources for Clients

Missouri Department of Natural Resources

Environmental Protection Agency, Region 7

St. Louis FUSRAP Timeline

Public Health Assessment of St. Louis Airport & Hazelwood Interim Storage/Futura Coatings Company sites, Agency for Toxic Substance & Disease Registry