West Virginia Resident Sues Union Carbide, Dow Chemical, Bayer Crop Science and Other Companies for Exposure to Cancer-Causing Ethylene Oxide

In the first of dozens of lawsuits to be filed by prominent environmental attorney Stuart Calwell, Charleston resident Cathy Darlene Flint seeks environmental justice for devastating exposure

CHARLESTON, W.Va., July 24, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A lawsuit filed last week in Kanawha County, West Virginia, alleges that Dow Chemical (NYSE: DOW), its Union Carbide subsidiary, Bayer Crop Science LP and other companies caused Charleston resident Cathy Darlene Flint to contract cancer after prolonged exposure to the dangerous chemical ethylene oxide (EtO). According to the lawsuit, EtO is found in high concentrations throughout the local area due to the defendants' reckless negligence in producing, storing and using the chemical.

Ms. Flint unwittingly spent decades inhaling the ethylene oxide gas that flooded her community, the lawsuit alleges. She has lived for more than 30 years directly across from the Union Carbide plant that used the compound in its manufacturing processes. She now has multiple myeloma, an incurable cancer of the plasma cells. She has undergone stem-cell treatment and ongoing rounds of chemotherapy in an attempt to stall the progression of the disease.

The lawsuit is led by prominent environmental tort attorney Stuart Calwell and his firm, Calwell Luce diTrapano PLLC.

Defendants include the manufacturers of EtO as well as other companies, including prominent healthcare systems such as Vandalia Health Systems, Inc., which operates the Charleston Area Medical Center, and Thomas Health System Inc., which operates WVU Medicine Thomas Hospitals in South Charleston. The lawsuit alleges that these healthcare facilities released the toxic gas into the air when sterilizing medical equipment — all the while knowing that their facilities operated without sufficient pollution-control systems and that the gas would spread throughout the surrounding community.

A Dangerous, Carcinogenic Gas

Ethylene oxide is a powerful, cancer-causing gas that is highly reactive, with widely acknowledged adverse effects when inhaled, including DNA mutations and blood cancers. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Toxicology Program, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the International Agency for Research on Cancer all classify EtO as a known human carcinogen. The chemical is undetectable in all but the highest concentrations, making it impossible for average Kanawha County residents to detect their exposure to the gas.

"Ethylene oxide is odorless, colorless and everywhere," attorney Stuart Calwell said. "Cathy Flint and hundreds of other local residents have unwittingly spent decades inhaling harmful amounts of EtO, simply by living at home, spending time in their yards, walking along the riverbank or neighborhood streets and boating on the Kanawha River."

"And the exposure continues to this very day," he added.

The EPA Environmental Justice Screening and Mapping Tool identifies the area around Ms. Flint's home as being in the 95^th to 100^th percentile of Air Toxics Cancer Risks.

Direct Venting into the Local Community

Among the more shocking claims, the lawsuit alleges that the defendants allowed unfiltered, purposeful venting directly into Kanawha Valley communities, even though emission controls such as catalytic oxidizer pollution control systems and scrubber systems were readily available.

Ms. Flint is seeking damages from the defendants for this pollution's devastating effects on her health, and hopes to see that other residents harmed by EtO can achieve justice as well.

Lead attorney Stuart Calwell of Calwell Luce diTrapano is one of the most accomplished attorneys in the nation in toxic-poisoning cases, with a history of fighting for environmental justice for communities harmed by reckless pollution. Perhaps most notably, Calwell battled Monsanto for more than 20 years over its contamination of Nitro, West Virginia, with dioxin, a hazardous chemical used, among other purposes, to manufacture Agent Orange. That case finally settled for approximately $100 million (click here for more detail). Calwell also won $151 million against West Virginia American Water (WVAW) over the poisoning of the water supply in southern West Virginia.

The defendants are Dow Chemical Company, Union Carbide Corporation, Covestro LLC, Bayer Material Science, Bayer Polymers LLC, Bayer Crop Science LP, Specialty Products US LLC, Aventis Crop Science, Arco Chemical Company, Lyondell Chemical Company, Rhone Poulenc Institute Plant, Rhone Poulenc AG Company, Altivia Services LLC, Broughton Foods LLC, Broughton Foods Company, Mid-Atlantic Technology, Research & Innovation Center Inc., Vandalia Health Systems, Charleston Area Medical Center Inc. and Thomas Health System Inc.

The case is Cathy Darlene Flint v. Union Carbide, et.al. (Kanawha County Circuit Court, Case No. CC-20-2024-C-773). More information and a copy of the complaint can be found on the Calwell Luce diTrapano PLLC website, here. Local residents who feel they have been injured should contact the firm at (800) 876-5529.

SOURCE Calwell Luce diTrapano PLLC