Lawsuit Blames Liver Damage on Groundwater Contamination

By Monica Galvan

Published on June 12, 2007

Irene Suchor, a McCullom Lake resident, is now among 18 claimants in a class-action lawsuit against chemical manufacturers Rohm and Haas, Morton International, and Modine Manufacturing Co. Until now, these lawsuits have sought compensation only for brain and nerve cancers. With her claim, Suchor, who had a liver transplant to treat her cirrhosis, now adds liver damage to the list of ailments allegedly caused by carcinogenic vinyl chlorides in the groundwater.

Suchor says that she consulted several doctors, but none was able to pinpoint the cause of her liver damage. She does not abuse alcohol and has never contracted hepatitis, thus ruling out the two most common causes of cirrhosis of the liver. Consequently, Suchor will join her neighbors in their fight against the area’s longstanding chemical manufacturers.

Rohm and Haas has acknowledged the contamination, saying that the pollution came from an on-site landfill but that it never reached the nearby village of McCullom Lake. The company claims to have maps showing that the plume of contamination did not extend into the area.

The suit was filed in a Philadelphia court. The chemical companies deny responsibility and plan to contend the lawsuit.

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