He's mopped up the mud and moved back into his mobile home at the Easy Living Trailer Park with his wife and 5-year-old son. Sitting at her dining-room table, gazing out across the hillside through her glass patio doors, she begins. On the other side of the road, at 210 Strecker Rd., developer Larry Wurm of James Properties Inc. is proposing to build Wildwood Ridge, an 11-home development on 7.6 acres of land now owned by Jean Callahan. Now the fledgling city faces a dilemma: Two developers are asking for zoning variances so that they can wedge dozens of high-priced houses on either side of Strecker Road on parcels of land that were once part of the Bliss-Ellisville hazardous-waste site. Just little bullshit. But PCBs have been found in the past along with dioxin at the now remediated sites in eastern Missouri. But while he uses words like fraud and cover-up, there is one key difference between this man and a full-blown environmental kook: Taylor knows that there are things he doesnt know. The EPA removed the remaining barrels in July 1983. As of now, no specifics about Russel Flowers involvement in the accident have emerged on the internet. She compiled a list of where Bliss and his employees collected waste and where they disposed of it. We continue to follow up on any information that is provided to us by the public.. Scottish Island for sale with asking price of $188,000. She sent a petition with hundreds of signatures to President Ronald Reagan, asking for a buyout. There are few records. The next day, he was sure that somebody was doing it to get even with him, Leistner says. They remembered birds dying. She had a brand-new leather jacket that had gotten dirty in the flood. If you looked up, there it was, Copeland says, still giggling about it 40 years later. Every year, former residents of Times Beach gather on the site to see old friends, tell stories, and inevitably shed a few tears. It would be better to err on the side of safety, says Shea, than risk exposing people to more hazardous waste by digging foundations on the Callahan property and inadvertently excavating a heretofore undetected layer of toxic waste. The area has been fenced off and excavated. The waste was the unwanted byproduct from manufacturing the antiseptic hexachlorophene. The EPA intends to cap that area with soil and sod to limit human exposure and soil erosion. Sid Hammer, who was chairman of the board of aldermen, became acting mayor, while Leistner became acting chairwoman. 1 killed in shooting at Massachusetts house party, Heavy shelling in Kherson, Kharkiv destroys residences, Cuba postpones International Workers' Day parade over fuel shortages, Democrats, Republicans remain split on debt ceiling plan. The sense of community, of belonging, made up for any financial lacking. asked Bill Keffer, the beleaguered EPA engineer in command here. But it was not until Piatt's horses began dying and her daughter became ill that CDC toxicologists believed something was dreadfully wrong. The following year, in November 1982, the city clerk received a phone call from a reporter. Several other sites were created because government agencies failed to prevent removal of tainted soil to other locations. The agency tested the incinerator to ensure that it was destroying dioxin. Dioxin concentrations of one part per billion are considered hazardous. WebThe Bliss site is an 11.5 acre tract owned by Jerry Russell Bliss, plus four contiguous properties near Ellisville, Missouri. JERRY-RUSSELL BLISS, INC Natalie M. Bliss, 58, passed peacefully on Tuesday, February 2, 2021, in her home with her husband and daughter by her side. Current Address: ETZR Strecker Rd, Ballwin, MO. This is the sort of place that, anywhere else, might seem like a harmless tourist trap. Its clean as a whistle, says Wurm of the Callahan property. Some was used in highway roadbeds. "Is it in the garbage? Natalie M. Bliss - Schrader Funeral Home, Inc. One of her adult sons has since contracted a lupus-like disease, says Jordan. That was a shock., Hes a dioxin skeptic. Jerry Russell Bliss, Inc. v. Pollution Control Board, 138 Ill. App. 3d The mostly pleasant trails run north by the railroad tracks and then take a right along the river. April 28 (UPI) -- A British piercing enthusiast broke his own Guinness World Record when the number of flesh tunnels in his face increased to 17. When asked to comment last week, Monsanto spokeswoman Diane Herndon responded with this prepared statement: No information exists that any dioxin material was hauled by Bliss for Monsanto and so no material from Monsanto would have been sprayed on roads. Piatt's daughter became ill, one of nine people to get sick. So Ill just let the record of decision stand for itself, OK? He was 92. Man who sprayed dioxin says he tried to be responsible Jerry Buss, the Los Angeles Lakers owner who shepherded the NBA team to 10 championships from the Showtime dynasty of the 1980s to the Kobe Bryant era, died Monday. The second half of the sites name is something of a misnomer, because the locations of the Bliss farm and the other hazardous-waste sites are all outside the Ellisville municipal limits. The fact of the matter is I dont believe people had evidence on Monsanto. I think its very interesting that PCBs were so overlooked, Taylor says. Jordan, who has lived in her home for 43 years, recalls the late Odie Greenspon, once operated a breeding farm for trotters at the location of the present park.. Or they might go fishing in the river. Yet the poisoning of Times Beach, and 14 other dioxin sites in Missouri and six in Illinois, happened long before that, a deadly legacy by industry and government from an era when there were no comprehensive laws to protect the public from dangers that few had imagined. TBAG, for example, acquired some of its more telling evidence from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA), which in turn obtained the information from the EPA and DNR. Downstream from the Verona plant, dairyman Bill Davis watched eight cows die after they drank from a river a half-mile from the factory where all Missouri's dioxin was once produced. The next meeting on the issue is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 6, at Wildwood City Hall, 16962 Manchester Rd. Did Times Beach officials know their city was high on the list? She was loyal, selfless, honest, and witty. WebJerry Russell Bliss, Age 66. The townspeople couldnt afford to have the results quantified, so they were given only yes-or-no answers. The concern's application was denied in early 1981, but Mr. Bliss has continued operating pending the appeal hearing that began here Monday morning. Meanwhile, Faron Rowden, a beefy bartender, is among 300 locals fed up with waiting for answers. Dioxin is known to cause damage to the human reproductive and immunological systems. Citizens blame state bureaucrats for deadly delay. Investigators rely on decade-old memories of people like Covert, a tall, thin man who claims a variety of ills from chemical exposure, to follow the toxic trail. But for the average person, its still unwise to smoke four packs a day. I had to go tell him we did it.. An EPA tracking sheet lists 29 such sites. There are many epidemiological studies that showed health effects in humans exposed to dioxins, says Dr. Hana Pohl, an environmental health scientist at the CDC. Jerry Russell Obituary - St. Louis, MO She lived there for a quarter century, until December 1982, at which point the town was thrown into what she calls the time of flood and dioxin. She has spent the past quarter century telling the Times Beach story. April 28 (UPI) -- A lost dog in Northern Ireland was found 26 days later after walking more than 40 miles to the home of his former owners. The version that the developer presented to Wildwood is pretty vague about what happened, Shea says. But if youre in the market for something called a Menopause Meter, youre in the right place. Representatives of the DNR and the Missouri Attorney Generals office were also present. Then came a 7-Eleven. However, the EPA is expected to release its Engineering Evaluation and Cost Analysis (EE/CA) for the two projects this month. Schecter uses the analogy of smoking cigarettes. In addition to the oil that he picked up at lube joints, he also hauled sludge from industrial facilities. She doesnt speak to me., Eventually, the properties of those who didnt take the buyout went into condemnation. He reported a litany of problems: Documents were lost; samples were mislabeled and switched; a chain of custody was not established. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Jerry Lewis, the legendary actor and comedian, has died, his talent agency said Sunday. Adjacent to the ravine, in a playing field, dioxin has been found at more than 9.5 ppb. British man breaks world record with 17 flesh tunnels on his face. Petitioner asserts: denial deprived petitioner of due process If you were born and raised there, you grew up there, but then you moved there., On Saturday nights, she and her husband would get together with friends to play penny-ante poker. No one is testing them. Sally Field's Husbands: Meet Her 2 Exes Plus Burt Reynolds If I thought it was something bad, would I spray it on my own farm where my family is? Bliss asked CNN in 1997, in one of the few extensive interviews hes given. This is not to say there is no controversy about dioxin. Theres a bumper sticker that says Ignorance is Bliss., They tell stories about the flood. Would any human being do that?, To be sure, Bliss views himself as a victim in all this. At the hearing on the matter, the DNR submitted two contracts between Monsanto and Russell Bliss dated 1975 and 1976, the time period in which Bliss is known to have sprayed Terre Du Lac. "I figure anyone who's been contaminated done been contaminated. Jerry Hatcher, the town's heavy equipment dealer, lost a sale when a customer found dust on a tractor tire. Theyve dragged me through the courts and I dont think theyre ever gonna quit, he told CNN. We've found it on the shoulders of the roads, but how much is in the roadbed? Once their stay in temporary housing ran out, it was hard for people to find homes. Leistner rejects the notion that its all simply genetic. Its very confusing, the fact that theyve kind of lumped these properties together yet dealt with them differently. Dioxin is considered a probable human carcinogen and is known to cause reproductive and immunological health problems in animals and humans. Of 15 confirmed dioxin sites in Missouri, five were contaminated by waste oil laced with dioxin from a southwest Missouri chemical plant for which Mr. Bliss hauled wastes in 1971. "Bliss told me it couldn't be in the oil because he didn't haul chemicals.". February 13, 2022 1 Min Read. For both PCBs and dioxin, it was a yes. His acting career began at the age of 12 when he was given a role in the western series The We didnt like that, because people were building new homes. The other St. Louis companies used PCBs or other hazardous substances for different purposes.. The mixture is used for dust WebClay Campbell makeup artist / makeup supervisor / makeup (209 episodes, 1959-1966) Gertrude Wheeler hair stylist / hair styles (173 episodes, 1960-1966) Now officials worry that they may never find the 87 places reportedly used for dumping of dioxin-contaminated waste oil. So do two of her granddaughters. Meanwhile, EPA technicians stalk the town in "space suits," sanitary gloves and respirators, digging through muddy homes and debris and taking soil samples to see if the heavy floods washed dioxin-laced mud from the roadsides into homes. And some, he mixed together with oil in storage tanks in both Missouri and Illinois, before selling it as a dust suppressant. I didnt set the price, but its my fault. It has caused a great deal of concern for people. Another possible alternative was eliminated in December, when the only available commercial incinerator licensed to accept dioxin-contaminated waste was shuttered in Coffeyville, Kan. It is also a probable carcinogen. When I talked with the (St. Louis) Post-Dispatch, I got misquoted. The liquor store doubled as a tackle shop, selling rods and bait. The same goes for rolling around in dioxin. But when it marks the site of one of the nations worst environmental disasters, an embroidered-jean-jacket emporium can feel a little disrespectful. That paved the way for final approval of the buyout. After years of trying, Taylor had finally attracted the interest of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). But even in the heat of election season, Taylor is happy to carve out a couple of hours to make his case about Times Beach and the problems he perceives with the cleanup. Well, you know, Leistner says now, Ive never collected.. Truckers crudely called him the hemorrhoid with the Polaroid. He wrote ticket after ticket. Times Beach had paid Bliss $4,900 to spray its streets in 1972. By visiting our site, you agree to our privacy policy regarding cookies, tracking statistics, etc. Insects fell from the air. Ive got letters from EPA and DNR also stating that everything is cool on the property. But Wurm says he doesnt want to discuss the project in detail, fearing his plans will be misrepresented. The EPA has taken all those necessary steps and there are no problems relative to any exposures to the public at this point. The haul included drums laden with cancer-causing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). In February 1983, Anne Gorsuch Burford, the administrator of the EPA, came to grant their wish. When he resigned, Leistner became acting mayor. Most of all missing accountability, Stelzer wrote in a piece titled Why the Times Beach Incinerator Should Be Shut Down.. During its investigations in the 1980s, the EPA rejected all the sites that Bliss may have sprayed before or after accepting the Verona waste, claiming those locations could not have possibly been contaminated with dioxin from the Verona chemical plant. You cant tell me dioxin has never caused anything. Indeed, no homeowner in Times Beach has flood insurance because the town voted itself out of the federal flood insurance program. Natalie is reunited in Heaven with her parents, Robert and Nanon Hyink; her mother-in-law, Evelyn Bliss; and a host of cowboys, cowgirls, and horses that loved her deeply. CNN Chicago: Toxic Town: Bliss Transcript It was in Illinois and it had a big fence around it. Although Mr. Lambarth was subpoenaed as a witness for the state, his testimony tended to support Mr. Bliss's contention that at the time he picked up the dioxin wastes, he did not know they were hazardous. During the past few months, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has taken more than 2,000 soil samples from the park, which is located near the North St. Louis County municipality of St. Ann. He was hired to dispose of the waste after Northeastern was absorbed by Syntex Agribusiness Inc. Court records show that Northeastern had waste buried on farm land and discharged some waste through its plant's sewage system. All rights reserved. Leistner remembers Times Beach kids being ostracized at school. It's been 30 years since dioxin contamination was discovered in Times Beach, in one of the largest environmental disasters in our nation's history. The initial unearthing of the contaminated caches led one state environmental official to say at the time, People move out here to escape pollution. The government estimates there are at least 14,000 hazardous waste dumps around the country that are leaking poisons, and residents in those areas want answers, too. But aside from some resentment toward the park, this is a happy day. (He declined to comment for this story.) Officials blame their inaction on scientists who once believed dioxin decays faster than it does. A video of a man holding a Black Lives Matter poster in Harrison The residents gathered in front of a hotel in Eureka, crowding around the outdoor pool. Others drove out through the rising water, trying to follow the roads they couldnt see. "If they had, I wouldn't have taken it. The oil, it turned out, was laced with dioxin. Sometimes, its thought that people are asking for complete safety, complete security. His parents opened a donut shop at the corner of Forest Road and Park Drive, serving Boston creams and coffee to the residents of the tight-knit community, nestled in a valley along the Meramec River, southwest of St. Louis. Bliss son still lives on a Strecker Road property once owned by his father, from which the EPA only a few years ago finally removed more than 900 On Aug. 7, Taylor asked the St. Louis County Council to assist TBAG by forming a task force to independently investigate possible hazardous waste sites that may have been overlooked in the past by the EPA and the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR). Leistner doesnt go to the reunions. He edited his footage down to a two-minute video, which he argues provides vivid firsthand evidence that racism is alive and well in parts of the country. She earned a business degree from Maryville University and served as the Treasurer of the family car business as well as a horse trainer. "You win a battle, you stick up a flag," said the Chrysler assembly line worker. Her house had been ravaged. Where are they now? Catching up with Mike Bliss They would write him a check., Rollins allegations have been corroborated to a degree by Judy Piatt, the one-time owner of Shenandoah Stables in Moscow Mill, Mo. The cleanup crew immediately sent 592 drums to a landfill in Wright City, Mo., but more than 600 barrels were stored on-site, along with 500 cubic yards of soil. I will bet you two weeks pay there is no dioxin on your streets, she recalls Bliss telling her. There are no signs to warn these park users that they are trekking through a hazardous waste site. They even had a couple of pool tables, and one time, Minnesota Fats stopped by for a game. One state environmental official then dismissed the CDC as "overly cautious.". Scientists disagree about how much it takes to put someone at risk. In August, the EPA warned Imperial residents of a potential dioxin problem, later revealing that it suspected contamination of 40 other sites in Missouri. They were also eligible for relocation assistance; if their new house outside of Times Beach cost more than their settlement, the Superfund program would pay part of the difference. "You'd tell people, 'it's got to be a chemical in the horse arena' and they'd look at you like you were nuts," she said. 'Fog of bees' briefly interrupts PGA Tour's Mexico Open. Dog missing for 26 days walked 40 miles to his former home. She was one of a dozen witnesses called so far this week by attorneys for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, which has denied Jerry Russell Bliss Inc., Mr. Bliss's concern, the hazardous waste transporter license it needs to stay in business. The agency then backfilled the hole with the same soil that had been stored at the site. The whole scene was surreal. But now, she turns indignant, her jaw tightening and eyes narrowing, seething at the people who dare to argue that dioxin never hurt anyone in Missouri. At the moment, shes trying to find the spot where her house used to be, but with the flower garden gone, shes just not sure. Leistner has four children, three girls and a boy. They didnt take the barrels from the Bliss farm until 1996, when the incinerator was here. Clean ups at both places have remained at a standstill for several months now. She traveled the country to countless rodeos, barrel races, and team ropings, often with her husband and daughter by her side. Monsanto refused to consider the governors appeal, even though before a federal ban on the chemical the company had been the sole producer of PCBs in North America. She pleaded for action. By 1982, the Missouri attorney generals office had entered negotiations with two other firms, American Can and GK Technologies. The activists appeal to the local governing body follows the public disclosure late last month of the existence of a previously undiscovered dioxin site in Ellisville. Indeed, it borders on negligence. Crammed into a single bungalow, he and his siblings slept on pallets. 20,000 cubic yards of soil contaminated with 2,3,7,8-TCDD. In 1925, folks who paid $67.50 for a six-month subscription to the old St. Louis Times received a tract in Times Beach. Fourteen calves either have been stillborn or died shortly after birth, and last week another tumor-riddled cow was slaughtered for dioxin testing by the Food and Drug Administration. It would set up a mobile incinerator, a massive metal jungle gym with a giant furnace and a single tall smokestack. he asked. "But such a huge amount of dirt is not feasible to burn. A dozen rabbits' ears were swabbed with a 300 ppb dioxin solution taken from contaminated soil residue. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the National MS Society . McClellan calls Bliss an intelligent and thoughtful man, and hes stayed in touch with the erstwhile waste hauler over the years. You want to make sure you do it right, and, in the process of doing it, safeguard the public. ", Dave Covert feels bad about what happened. A missing page, a missing date, a missing signature. A Town, a Flood, and Superfund: Looking Back at the Times Ive felt that the steps that weve taken and the timeliness of those steps have been appropriate, says Hall. A venerable columnist, McClellan hedges his bets by saying Who knows? about dioxins dangers, rather than drawing any final conclusion. Kurt Vogel Russell is an American actor. On the recommendation of an EPA ombudsman, a retest was completed. My (goal) is to have a park that is presentable to the public and that is safe to the public and doesnt put them at any risk. The couples property is adjacent to the Bliss farm. Taylor thought that sounded like a bad idea, so he co-founded the Times Beach Action Group to oppose the incinerator. To outsiders, Times Beach residents might as well have bubonic plague. Stuff flooded in for us to have Christmas like you wouldnt believe, she says. He operates a roadside attraction, a classic car museum in St. James, and he travels to flea markets. Look at the record of decision. she asked. "Under no circumstances would I want to raise a family in Times Beach," said Dr. Gary Stein, a CDC epidemiologist. And they aren't the only ones angry and confused. According to a 1981 IEPA document, Piatt recalled that Bliss possibly obtained waste from Monsanto. The IEPA summary goes on to state: Judy Piatt has a diary and pictures of such activities, but will not release these to (EPA) Region VII on the advise of her attorney., But perhaps the most damning indictment comes from Bliss himself. They were looking for who did it. Many in Times Beach were caught in their homes. There are other holes in the EPAs theory. Hes been sued repeatedly. The level of PCBs was low, not a major concern, but the dioxin was a problem. JERRY-RUSSELL BLISS v. HAZARDOUS WASTE - Casemine In May, a second flood hit, a sort of aftershock, and in June, Leistner won the mayoral election, defeating a challenger who wanted to stay. Each gap represents a former road. Mr. Lambarth's testimony contradicted that of a former manager of the Verona chemical plant, who said that Bliss drivers were always furnished protective gear and warned about the hazardousness of the sludge as they pumped it into their trucks. Past Addresses: Eureka MO, Saint James MO The EPA is a potential defendant in litigation by citizens. April 29 (UPI) -- An Australian tourist facing possible flogging after being accused of going on a drunken nude rampage in the Indonesian province of Ache says he felt "almost possessed" at the time. I dont really think there was enough dioxin down here to do anything, he says. These days, Bliss, whos in his late seventies, is still finding unique ways to make a buck. Within a couple of days, cats, dogs, and birds in the vicinity began to drop dead. Monsanto is where we got the pesticide, the stuff that I thought smelled like bug spray. Surveyors have also staked out a section of the park near Jordans residence with bright orange flags. 67115 (Mo. It was like everybody was related to everybody, Leistner says. Bliss has said he was not told the oil contained dioxin. They put up drywall in her house. The EPA, Monsanto, and the Cover Up Well, no. Missouri's problem is different from New York's Love Canal, which Hooker Chemical used as a toxic dump for dioxin until it was discovered in 1978. Using a microphone, Burford announced to the people outside that the Superfund would buy their homes at fair market value. Jerry Bliss was the first witness today when the hearing resumed. Some communities, worried that former Times Beach residents would bring dioxin with them, put up signs telling them to stay away. In an effort to control the dust, the city hired waste oil hauler Russell Bliss to spray them down, which he did multiple times between 1972 and 1976. Of particular note was a chemical plant in Verona, which had been used to produce Agent Orange and hexachlorophene, an ingredient used in soap. Bliss son still lives on a Strecker Road property once owned by his father, from which the EPA only a few years ago finally removed more than 900 truckloads of dioxin-contaminated dirt in addition to an estimated 1,500-2,000 barrels of toxic chemicals. And blah, blah, blah. Those memories are particularly present today, the final Saturday of September. A 74-year-old grandmother, Leistner looks 10 years younger and remains as feisty as ever, with no plans to retire. She also remembers the flood. United States v. Bliss, 133 F.R.D. 559 - Casetext He is now 78 and lives just off I-44 near Cuba. Wurm is referring to Tom Uhlenbrock, who first reported the Wildwood development plans in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on June 11. Denial of Application. WITNESS SAYS DRIVER LIED ABOUT SPRAYING DIOXIN, https://www.nytimes.com/1983/01/27/us/witness-says-driver-lied-about-spraying-dioxin.html. The plant was owned by a subsidiary of Syntex, the company ultimately held liable for the eastern Missouri Superfund clean up. In his bid for re-election that year, Teasdale also made a campaign stop at the Bliss-Ellisville site to again ask for Monsantos assistance. Bliss has said he had no idea that toxic chemicals were involved. It was beautiful., Yes. Three parties Jean Callahan, Kisco Co. and Bliss refused to pay for the cleanup. Worst of all, Piatts two young daughters, who played in the arena as if it were a sandbox, fell ill. Doctors and veterinarians were stumped, but Piatt suspected the spraying was to blame. Supreme Court of Teachers made them sit at the front of class, away from the rest of the students, in case they were contagious. I think theyve done that.. At the Lemar site, the dioxin levels are even higher. Jerry Our city adopted a resolution asking them to remedy this problem as quickly and efficiently as possible, says LaGarce. Jerry Russell Bliss, Age 66. aka Jerry Bliiss. The EPA and CDC have each published massive documents detailing the many health hazards associated with it. Sometimes its just best to leave well enough alone.. Then there were the health problems. We would invite the press out, and we would spray-paint the prices on the homes. She has a photograph of a house with $15,800 scrawled across the siding. Bliss testified at a subsequent DNR hearing that materials found at the site had come from Monsantos research lab.