In northeast Wichita, Kansas, a chemical that is known to increase the cancer risk to humans has seeped into the ground for decades, contaminating the groundwater widely unbeknownst to residents, according to local officials.
Some 50 years after an apparent Trichloroethylene chemical spill that experts say put generations at risk, a community push for more complete protection and a potential class-action lawsuit is gaining ground.
“Northeast Wichita is a community of resilience and grit,” Wichita City Councilmember Joseph Shepard, who represents the affected area, told ABC News. “So when something terrible happens, you are going to see this community fight back… They’re going to rise up and work together to hold people accountable.”
How PFAS are entering America’s water supply
In 1994, high levels of Trichloroethylene (TCE), a liquid commonly used for metal degreasing, were noticed in the soil during preparations for development in northeast Wichita. According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment (KDHE), the source of the contamination was identified several years later as a chemical spill at the Union Pacific Railroad railyard nearby sometime in the 1970s or 80s. The exact date of the incident is still unknown…